


Just To Be With You

by CatiiaSofiia, MissChrisDaae



Series: You Are The Reason [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Dark, Angst and Romance, Death Star, F/M, Force Visions, Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-23
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-02-23 04:10:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23272111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatiiaSofiia/pseuds/CatiiaSofiia, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissChrisDaae/pseuds/MissChrisDaae
Summary: The palace on Mustafar has become a smoldering crater.Padmé Amidala is both pregnant and a prisoner of the Emperor.Darth Vader has managed to survive and find the Rebel Alliance, rediscovering his birth name, Anakin Skywalker, but leaving his past behind is harder than it seems.Time is running short, and everything is at stake.
Relationships: Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Series: You Are The Reason [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1606999
Comments: 36
Kudos: 103





	1. I'm Losing My Sleep

“No!  _ No _ !” Padmé pounded against the transparisteel of the shuttle as she watched the fortress grow smaller and be consumed by the explosions.  _ Vader… _

“Oh, don’t weep, Amidala, it’s very tiresome,” Sidious sneered as he watched her crumple against the wall of the shuttle. “Get her on the examination table.”

“Keep your hands off me!” She thrashed in the grip of the guards as they pulled her away. “Stop it!” They ignored her and wrestled her down onto the table, locking her in place with a set of binders on her wrists and another at her ankles. One of them ripped open her robe, and she winced at her naked body being bared in front of these two strangers and Sidious. A barricade wrapped around her exposed stomach as she felt a needle jab roughly into her skin.

“Don’t struggle, my dear, we wouldn’t want anything to damage your precious cargo,” Sidious taunted, and Padmé stilled as the truth of his words finally sunk in. She was pregnant. She was having Vader’s baby, and the timing could not be worse. Tears began to streak down her face as she sobbed in anguish. Sidious scowled and shoved the gag back into her mouth. “You’re going to be crying far more often over these next several months, don’t waste it all on this moment.” She glared up at him, and he just cackled. “I am going to enjoy that time. I will enjoy seeing you suffer, knowing what awaits both you and your progeny.”

“Mmmmph.” she whimpered into the gag.

"The best part, my dear, is that there is no one to save you. Everyone thinks you are dead, an act committed by your  _ beloved, _ " he sneered at the term. "Who will not be coming for you anytime soon." His gaze traveled up to the monitor above her. “Or your  _ children.  _ Oh, that is  _ very _ interesting.”

"It seems the subject is carrying twins, your Majesty, and is one and a half months along," the medical droid reported. 

“I shall have to adjust my plans to account for that,” Sidious mused. “And see which of them proves the more competent Apprentice.”

_ Never!  _ Padmé wanted to scream, but she couldn’t move while the needle was still in her stomach, she couldn’t hurt her babies...

"I always knew you were going to be useful for something. Granted, I always thought it would be a more political use, not as the mother of the next generation of Sith, but useful nonetheless." He smiled down at her. “Though perhaps I can have it both ways. Of course, we would have to make some modifications to this lovely face,” he paused to stroke a wrinkled finger across her cheek, “but done right, you could be reintroduced to the Galaxy as my Empress, the mother of my heirs. What do you say, my dear?”

As soon as he pulled the gag away, she spat directly into his face. “Why do you delude yourself into thinking I’m that same naïve child from all those years ago? Every promise you’ve ever made me is empty, why would this one be any different? You stole the Galaxy, you stole Vader, and you’re going to steal my babies too. You’re making this offer to torment me, to see if you can take my integrity from me too when you’ve already made up your mind to kill me. You left Vader trapped and devoid of human interaction for—” The gag went back in and Sidious scowled.

“You’re too clever for your own good. But I suppose I can still enjoy your misery until I do put you out of it. Enjoy your pregnancy, Padmé, because as soon as my new Apprentices are born, your life is over.”

* * *

“I am still not comfortable with this.”

Anakin rubbed a hand across his face and sighed, deeply. He wasn’t comfortable with anything that had transpired over the past six weeks since he woke up in Takodana, and he wasn’t complaining about  _ half  _ as much as the Jedi. “Of course you are not,” he said flatly.

Obi-Wan Kenobi gave him a sullen glance. “Your survival was  _ miraculous _ on its own, forgive my wishing to be cautious in case this is a trap by the Emperor.”

“You are completely right,” Anakin drawled out. “After all, the Emperor only brainwashed me when I was ten, made me wear armor to suppress my powers and if that wasn’t enough, he had me injected daily with a ysalamir concoction so I wouldn’t grow stronger than him. Not to mention that he kidnapped the woman I love and blew up a fortress so I would be buried beneath lava and rock,” he enumerated and then shrugged. “Obviously, I am still his very faithful, loyal servant and just making everyone a fool.”

“That is  _ not _ what I meant—”

“Both of you, enough,” Qui-Gon scolded. “You’re setting a terrible example for Ahsoka.”

“Actually, I think this is really funny,” the young Togruta laughed.

Anakin’s lips quirked upwards. From the lot of the Force-sensitives he had met, Ahsoka Tano had been, by far, his favorite. “You don’t trust me,” he said. “I accept that. I also don’t trust you. Your Code had me sick for a few weeks,” he grimaced.

“The three of us have not officially followed the Code for many years,” Qui-Gon pointed out. “Ahsoka never has, we rescued her from the Inquisitorius when she was three years old.”

“Then what rules do you obey now?” Anakin inquired, raising one eyebrow. “What happened to Grand Master Yoda?” He tilted his head. “Sidious  _ hates  _ that little green fellow.”

“He’s not part of the Alliance,” Obi-Wan said, a little too quickly. “And our primary rules have been to save as many people as we can and keep the Dark Side from consuming more of the galaxy while your mother insisted on looking for you.”

“Try to sound  _ less  _ excited about the prospect of a mother looking for her child, Obi-Wan, I dare you,” Anakin rolled his eyes. “Just because your parents gave you up to the Order when you are a baby, it doesn’t mean others give up their children so easily.”

“The Order is where I belonged,” Obi-Wan bristled. “And I would like to point out that without it, Padmé Amidala would have died long before you ever had the chance to meet her.”

Before Anakin countered, Shmi stood up and cleared her throat. “I think it’s enough for today, don’t you all agree?”

“Yes!” Ahsoka said, jumping up from her seat. “I’m hungry. I think we all are. Right, Skyguy?”

“Will you quit calling me that?” Anakin groaned.

“Highly unlikely,” she quipped and he snorted.

“I’ll get started on supper while you boys play nice,” Shmi warned, kissing Anakin’s head. “Will you help me, Ahsoka?”

“Why not have Anakin help?” the young girl asked. “Mother-son bonding time?”

“Anakin needs to work with the others to figure out how we rescue Padmé.”

“Besides, I can’t cook to save my life,” he grimaced.

“I’ll help,” Obi-Wan offered, getting up from the table. “Since Ahsoka has clearly grown so attached to Anakin.”

“What’s the matter, Obi-Wan?” Ahsoka teased. “You don’t like your new baby brother?”

Qui-Gon nearly choked on his caff as Anakin bit the inside of his cheek to keep himself from bursting out laughing at Obi-Wan’s scandalized face.

“He—I—You—” the younger Jedi sputtered and scowled before storming off, and Shmi shook her head.

“Really.”

“I had to.” Ahsoka giggled.

“Throwing barbs back and forth is hardly productive,” Qui-Gon reminded, shaking his head. “Anakin, perhaps we can work on your saber work while we wait for dinner to be ready? No use of Light or Dark side, just swordsmanship.”

Anakin rubbed the back of his neck. “I am tired of training with a practice saber, Qui-Gon. I need a kyber crystal. I need to build a new lightsaber.”

“That is easier said than done, nearly every deposit of kyber is controlled by the Empire.”

“Not every deposit,” he mumbled. “I know there is one that the Empire is not heavily guarding and that we can slip through without a lot of fussing. The one in Christophsis.” 

“We’d need a halfway decent ship,” Ahsoka pointed out. “And we don’t have one right now, we’re still waiting for it to get back.”

“You seem well-connected, Ahsoka. Do you know anyone with a halfway decent ship?” Anakin questioned.

“The one we normally use is with Kanan right now,” she explained. “There always has to be at least a few Jedi here on base, in case of an attack. He’s back in two weeks. You can wait ten days, right?”

_ Ten more days. To add to the last thirty. To add to however long Padmé had been pregnant before she was taken…  _ “I mean, we’re always running against the clock, but we can use the time wisely, I hope.”

“You can practice making a saber with mine in the meantime,” Ahsoka offered, wiggling it in front of her face. “I’m fine with fixing it if you mess up.”

“I don’t intend to mess it up,” he accepted it. “But won’t you need it?”

“I have two,” she admitted.

“A double lightsaber fighter?” He smiled. “You are full of surprises… Snips.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Don’t call me Skyguy.”

“No way.”

“Children,” Qui-Gon exhaled, shaking his head. “The both of you.”

* * *

“You were at odds with some of the children back on Tatooine too,” Shmi remarked from the doorway. “You were never afraid to call people out on what you thought was bantha poodoo.”

“That sounds like me,” Anakin mused. “I’m starting to remember a couple of things. Mostly about you,” he said softly. “Although I fear there is a lot I will never recover.”

“Do you remember Threepio?” she asked, coming to sit by him on the bed of his standard-issue bed.

There was a painful tug at his heart. “My protocol droid. He was destroyed in the raid at Mustafar. All I got was… his memory card and plating.”

“Well, that is… unfortunate, but,” his mother paused and offered him a hand. “Come with me.” He frowned, but accepted her hand and followed her down the corridor to a room full of droids in various states of repair. A blue and white astromech whirred and beeped as they entered. “Hello, Artoo,” Shmi said with a smile. “This is my son, Anakin. Anakin, this is Artoo-Deetoo. He’s an astromech from Naboo, he actually used to work for Padmé.”

At the sound of Padmé’s name, the astromech’s dome spun wildly while he whistled loudly.

“Mistress Shmi, is that you exciting him?” a familiar voice asked. A protocol droid with his wires exposed began to waddle through the other droids towards them. Artoo beeped a reprimand about being naked.

“Threepio?” Anakin whispered, stunned.

“Do I know you, sir?”

“That is why I made him,” he didn’t even listen to him and took a couple of more steps. “I remembered all of the designs and made him from scratch. But you…” he blinked, “I did it with the scrap metal I found at Watto’s.”

“You were taken before you could finish him,” Shmi explained mournfully.

“It explains why I felt a sense of accomplishment when I finished his… well, his brother so to speak,” he chuckled. “Hi, Threepio. It’s me. It’s… Ani.”

“Master Ani? But you’re so old!” the droid exclaimed.

“It has been thirteen years,” Anakin laughed. “You’re still missing the plating,” he mused.

“I had a bit of a feeling you’d want to finish him,” his mother said with a laugh.

“I might have an idea. Are you fond of the gold color, Threepio?”

“Well, that is rather kind, Master Ani, but are you sure it’s not too extravagant?”

“I think it will look great on you,” he nodded, before leaning down to pat Artoo’s dome. “Padmé will be happy to see you,” he whispered. “We’re going to get her back.”

“I’m looking forward to meeting her,” Shmi added with a smile. “Shall we take Threepio back to your room and let you work on him there?”

“It will keep my mind busy,” he nodded solemnly. “At least for a while.”

“You know we’ll find her, don’t you?” she asked, pressing a hand to his cheek. “Don’t lose hope.”

“She made me have hope, Mom, and now she’s gone and I don’t know what he’s doing to her. He could be brainwashing her at this very moment to forget me. He could be torturing her for information. I can’t sleep at night. I have nightmares every time I close my eyes.”

Something flashed in his mother’s eyes. “Tell me about them. The nightmares. Tell me in detail.” She gripped his arms with a surprising amount of force.

Anakin’s eyes widened in surprise at his mother’s reaction. “They are very detailed… they… uh… I lose her every time. If I rescue her, she dies in my arms. If I don’t, she dies anyway. It’s like she’s destined to die just because she is with me. All I hear is his laughter in the background. I’m starting to believe I am not meant to be happy, because he wins. Every time… he wins. He always takes something from me,” he choked.

Shmi pulled him tightly into a hug. “You had nightmares in the days before you were taken from me. I didn’t listen then, and I lost you. Maybe if I had…” She shook her head, pulling back. “I think that may have given us our first clue, Ani. Your future  _ can _ be changed, I am sure of it.”

“Until he’s gone, Mom, I don’t have a future. He won’t allow it.”

“Anakin, it’s possible to stop him. He wouldn’t have feared you if you couldn’t.”

“There is a lot about me that I don’t know. I feel more powerful than I ever did before, yes, but I don’t know what to do with that. For the past decade, I felt a fragment of the Force I feel now… it’s daunting. I don’t want to be a Sith anymore. Or a Jedi. I just want to be somebody who can take care of the people he loves. Which I’m doing a horrible job at so far,” he sulked.

“You know what I’m going to say.”

“What?” He sighed, squeezing her hand.

“You need to let Qui-Gon instruct you in the ways of the Light Side. Not the Jedi specifically, but the Light Side. You need to learn how to use your powers in every possible way. It’s the only way you’ll defeat him. It’s the only way you’ll save her.”

Anakin nodded in understanding. “I’ll speak to him in the morning. Maybe we can come to an agreement on the training.”

* * *

“I’ll accept it,” Anakin said the following morning, as Qui-Gon drank his caff and watched the HoloNews. When the Jedi looked at him with a raised eyebrow, the former Sith sighed and took a seat next to him. “The training, Qui-Gon. I accept the training.”

“Obi-Wan will be thrilled,” Qui-Gon smirked, pleased by Anakin’s acceptance of his destiny and his proactiveness of reaching out to him. Shmi had worked magic with the boy.

“I don’t care about Obi-Wan’s feelings,” he scoffed. “I care about saving Padmé. If I have to train the Light Side to accomplish that, I’ll do it.”

“Then we’ll start your meditative training today.” Qui-Gon nodded. “And provided you learn quickly, we can leave for Christophsis as soon as the  _ Ghost  _ returns.”

“Meditation?” Anakin raised one eyebrow. “I don’t do meditation. It doesn’t agree with me.”

“You will need it when you are on Christophsis. Kyber caves test those who come seeking crystals.”

“You Jedi need to do everything the hard way, don’t you?” Anakin sighed, exasperated. “Fine. Meditation. When can we do it?”

“We can start after I’ve finished my breakfast,” Qui-Gon answered, taking another bite of the bread roll sitting next to his caff. “I suggest you eat something too. This is going to be a long day.”

Anakin bit back a groan and stood up. He was going to find his Mom, eat, and pray to the Force that he didn’t regret his decision.


	2. I'd Climb Every Mountain

Padmé bit her lip as she twisted the wires in front of her, hoping that this time would be the time that worked. This would be her eighth time trying to escape her prison, and it was getting on her nerves. She’d been hoping that a place that had once been the Jedi Temple would have had more potential escape routes, but apparently, Sidious had thought of that long ago and blocked them off. Every time she made it out of the quarters where she was being held, she was inevitably caught and moved to a new part of the Palace. It was now a weekly routine and there was absolutely no reason to think that this time would end any differently. 

But she had to keep trying. She had to believe that there would be one time when this would end differently, one time where she’d succeed. “Vader,” she whispered, grasping at the spot where her necklace should have been. It had been ripped from her neck during the abduction, and though she had grabbed once, it had fallen from her grip in her attempts to reach him. It was probably ashes now, just like he was. A tear slipped down her cheek as the door of her cell opened, the efforts of her meddling with the circuitry from the inside. “Wherever you are, love, give me strength. Let this be the time I make it.”

“You are starting to get on my nerves, Amidala,” a cold voice declared. She didn’t even have to look to know who it was. 

“Sidious. I could say the same for you.”

“Seize her,” he ordered the guards that immediately stalked forward and grabbed her arms. “If you had played nice, I wouldn’t be forced to take such drastic measures,” he sneered.

“I will not  _ play nice _ while you plot to steal my babies and murder me.”

“I am sure you are full of opinions. You will have to keep them to yourself while in stasis,” he announced. “Having you asleep until my heirs are born will drastically improve my mood since you are nothing but a source of trouble.”

“Stasis?” She shook her head. “You’re bluffing. There’s no way to put me in stasis without risking the health of my children.” But even as she said it, she was panicking. What if he  _ did  _ have away?

“Oh no, my dear, I am perfectly aware of what I am doing,” he smiled coldly at her. “Children can live inside the womb and be healthy, as long as the mother is receiving the nutrients she needs for their development. You don’t need to be awake for that, Amidala,” he nodded at the guards. “Take her to the medical bay and prepare for the procedure.”

“Please, no, I am begging you, don’t do this to me. You can’t guarantee that it’ll work the way you want it to!”

“You should have thought of that before testing my patience,” Sidious hissed, his eyes flashing gold. “I hope you enjoyed your pregnancy so far, this will be the last of your memories.”

“You could hurt my babies,” she pleaded. “You don’t know for certain that this won’t affect them. I’ll be good, please… please…”…

Sidious ignored her, turning his back and leaving as the guards dragged her away in tears.

* * *

“The good news about Christophsis is that nearly the entire planet has access to a kyber cavern,” Obi-Wan remarked as he viewed the map of the planet. “We should be able to find an unguarded entrance without too much trouble.”

“Aw, but the trouble is the fun part,” Ahsoka complained.

“We’ll get into trouble when I get my lightsaber,” Anakin mused, bumping her shoulder. “How long will it take for me to get the kyber crystal? Any ideas?”

“On Ilum, younglings only get a planetary rotation,” Obi-Wan answered coolly. “Or they’re trapped inside the cave once the door freezes over.”

“You can still break through the ice sheet sometimes,” Ahsoka pointed out. “Don’t be so dramatic.”

“I can be more dramatic than him,” Anakin quipped with a smirk. “Alright. One day, or in the eloquent way of our Jedi companion,  _ planetary rotation _ ,” he mimicked. “I can do it.” He said confidently.

“That’s the spirit,” Ahsoka grinned. “He’ll totally be able to handle it, Obi-Wan.”

“I’m not so optimistic,” the bearded Jedi scoffed. “Who knows  _ what _ the cave will make him confront.”

“Trust me, whatever it is, I’ve dealt with worse,” Anakin crossed his arms with a cold smile.

“Oh, yes, you’re very impressive for all those terrified unarmed people who were sent to you like livestock for slaughter.”

“Boys, you’re both pretty, stop it,” Ahsoka scoffed.

"Is all that bitterness because you never got laid?" Anakin asked. "Or is that just the stick up your ass?"

“You may be the Chosen One, but that does not give you the right to lord over the rest of us,” Obi-Wan shot back. “I do not answer to you.”

“He might deny it, but the Duchess of Mandalore has a ‘nephew’ that looks a loooot like him,” Ahsoka whispered dramatically. 

"Oh, is that so?" Anakin raised an eyebrow. "Not a virgin there, but I can guess where the bitterness comes from. Look, Obi-Wan, I'm not here as a Chosen One. I don't care for it. Qui-Gon does. All I want is Padmé. Alright? I want to take down Sidious for selfish reasons. I might sound like a heartless monster, but the truth is, I am not doing this for the greater good. I'm doing this for me. For the woman that I love. I'm being honest. Can you be honest?" he challenged. "Can you tell me the real reason you have to hate me?”

“You just answered your own damn question,” he said stiffly. “You’re not here as the Chosen One. You don’t  _ care.  _ This entire galaxy could go to hell, and it wouldn’t matter to you if you managed to come out of it with everything you wanted. Thirteen years, I’ve watched countless people sacrifice their lives, I’ve watched my master obsess over a myth. And then  _ you _ show up and you don’t even care what has happened. What is  _ still _ happening. All that matters is your own selfish desires.”

“Obi-Wan,” Ahsoka frowned, but the older Jedi shook his head.

“No. I will not coddle him or fawn over him. How many people have lost their loved ones  _ forever _ because of Sidious? He doesn’t care! He doesn’t care about anyone or anything except himself!”

Anakin pursed his lips, a muscle in his jaw twitching at the Jedi's words. "You are taking all of your frustration on me, and that's probably what you need to move forward," he said, a bit too calmly. "Can we? Move forward?" He emphasized. "I won't tell you you are wrong. You are completely right. I am selfish but that was my upbringing. I am very sorry that yours made you give up on what makes you have hope, the woman that you love I presume? We are all selfish creatures," Anakin said fiercely. "What I am doing is for Padmé. Does that mean saving the Galaxy? Sure, it's a plus. Why are you doing this? Why do you fight every day? Because of the greater good? I don't buy that," he scoffed. "You do this because you want the Galaxy to be a better place for your Duchess and her…  _ nephew. _ "

“I do it because it is the right thing to do,” Obi-Wan snapped, turning away from him. “And that is all the reason  _ anyone _ should need.”

“You  _ need _ to let go of the old ways,” Ahsoka reminded him. “We can fight for the greater good  _ and _ have attachments.”

“My  _ attachments _ are to democracy and the Republic. I swore to be a defender of peace and justice, not a mercenary for a selfish child.”

“Obi-Wan, come on…”

“I’m going to check with Qui-Gon for our estimated time of arrival.” He stormed out and Ahsoka sighed. 

“I can’t believe I offend him so much for fighting for what I love,” Anakin made a face. “It’s not my fault his life sucks. My life was hell for thirteen years and I’m not going around insulting people,” he scowled. “I know what this is really about. His Master. Qui-Gon is focusing too much on me because of that stupid Chosen One prophecy and is not paying attention to what Obi-Wan wants. What do you think, Snips?” Anakin turned to her. “Do you think I should be selfless and sacrifice everything because some old legend says I’m the Chosen one?”

“I think I told you not to call me Snips,” she huffed. “But I think the prophecy is way too vague to decide that there’s any one set interpretation. I think your interpretation is probably the only one that matters. But I’m also a teenager. Your mom says teenagers are generally idiots.”

“I killed people in my teenage years, she might be right,” he said dryly. “But I like your view on the prophecy. I don’t see myself as the Chosen One. I don’t want to be  _ him  _ because I can’t be that selfless person the Galaxy needs,” he sighed, rubbing his temples. “Padmé used to say I’m learning.  _ Still  _ learning. About being a human. Feeling. Caring for others. Maybe if she was with me, if I knew she was safe, I could be the person they wanted because she would make me that person, but I can’t focus on anything else but saving her.”

“She has that effect on people.” Ahsoka sat in one of the chairs around the map. “She never saw herself that way, but she was basically the glue that held the alliance together. We  _ all _ would love to have her back.”

“I’ll try to share her when I get her back,” he said with a smile.

“Honestly, I wouldn’t blame you guys if you wanted to run away and leave this whole mess to us,” Ahsoka replied amicably. “But somehow, I’m not sure she’d be okay with that.”

“Trust me, I would like to run away and let it all behind us, but she would never be able to live with that,” he snorted. “I think we all have one… two things… in common. We both want Sidious gone. We both want to save Padmé. That’s what I’m going to focus on.”

“Killing Sidious would make it a lot easier for you to retire, so good plan.”

“I’m twenty-three… there is still a lot that I have to do,” Anakin chuckled. “But I’m doing it with Padmé. For that… Sidious has to go and I’ll take care of that. With pleasure.”

“Would you mind doing one other thing?”

“What?” He asked curiously.

“Would you be willing to train me until we get her back?”

He blinked in surprise. “Really? You want  _ me  _ to train you? Ahsoka, I don’t have experience on the Light Side, I’m more centered on the Dark Side.”

“Yeah, but your saber skills are  _ amazing _ ,” she argued. “And I want to learn from you. Maybe I can help you with some of the issues you’ve been having in your own training. Fair trade?”

At that, Anakin smiled. “Deal, Snips. You got yourself a partnership.”

* * *

Stasis was its own form of torture. An unending cycle of nightmares, dreams, and memories that Padmé had no means of escape. She didn’t know how long she’d been trapped, and her own mind gave her no answers, only visions she couldn’t begin to understand.

At the moment, those visions had her wandering in an endless desert that made her understand Vader’s hatred for the terrain. She couldn’t feel hunger or thirst, but the way it stretched on into infinity made it hellish all the same. “You win, my love,” she sighed, rubbing at her stomach. “I don’t like sand either.”

“Padmé?” A voice murmured from behind her. She turned. Not wanting to hope that she was right, and yet there he was.

“Vader?” she whispered in disbelief. “But…”

“The power of meditation,” he began as a way of explaining the surreal experience they were going through.

“You’re  _ alive _ ,” she sobbed, throwing her arms around his neck in relief. “I knew it, I knew it.”

He laughed and hugged her back. “It was not for lack of trying to kill me, but I managed to pull through,” he whispered in her ear. “Where are you?” Anakin asked, pulling away. “I’ll go and I’ll get you. I don’t know how long I can be here. I’m meditating in a room and you know how I am with being still for too long,” he tried to joke as he caressed her cheek. “Just tell me where you are.”

“The Imperial Palace,” she answered, still holding him tight. “It used to be the Jedi Temple. I don’t know where inside it exactly, I tried to escape one too many times and he had me put in stasis.”

“Stasis…” he mumbled. “How… how are you connecting to the Force like this? I felt your pull. I focused on it and… we’re here. How? You’re not Force-sensitive. I mean… not enough for something like this.”

“It must be…” she trailed off, taking his hands and placing them on her stomach. “They’re calling out to their daddy.”

“Oh,” right, he had forgotten for a couple of moments she was carrying. His child. Their child. “Of course, your Force sensitivity has risen with the child,” he nodded with the smallest of smiles.

“Children,” she corrected softly. “It’s twins.”

He took a couple of moments to react, his hands still on her stomach. “Oh,” he repeated, feeling foolish. “No wonder it was so strong,” Anakin frowned. “It’s Anakin, by the way.”

“What?”

“My name. My real name. Anakin. Anakin Skywalker.”

“Anakin Skywalker,” she repeated, tasting the name on her lips. “I think I like it.”

“It sounds better than Vader,” he admitted. “I’ll get to you as soon as I can, love. I promise. I’m working on getting you back, on removing Sidious from our lives permanently.”

“And you’ll succeed, I know it.” She leaned up to kiss him desperately, leaning into him with a soft moan.

“Don’t do that, I’m not close to you to finish what we started that fateful morning,” he groaned. “We’ll do whatever we want when we’re together again. I promise. I can’t wait to be with you again. To have you all to myself and ensure no one else hurts you.”

“Tell me what’s happened. How long since I’ve been taken… how much time do we have, Anakin?”

“It has been eight weeks since you were taken,” he said. “How far along were you? I believe we still have time before the child…  _ children _ … are born, but I need to know how much.”

“The droid that scanned me said a month and a half, that means,” she paused to do the math. “We have five months at most. Maybe six if they come late, but I don’t trust Sidious not to cut them out of me if he gets impatient.”

“That is not going to happen,” he made a face. “I’ll get to you in time. You’ll be safe.”

“I wish I could offer you more information, I wish I could do more to help,” she whispered, leaning her head against his chest. “I want us all to be safe.”

“Just knowing you are alright, despite the circumstances, makes me feel better and gain additional strength to fight him,” he kissed the top of her head. “I love you,” he whispered. “So much. Stay strong for me.”

“I will,” she promised. “But come back to me in here. I’m alone here and I’m worried I might lose my mind before you find me.”

“As long as I can, I will return to you. I promise. I’m sorry I failed you before. I won’t do it again.”

“It’s not your fault,” Padmé said, running her fingers through his hair. “We’ll find a way.” She had to believe that, if she didn’t, it was just another thing contributing to her potential madness.

All of a sudden, her hands were no longer running through his hair, her warmth was no longer embracing him. Anakin could no longer feel the small bump pushed against his stomach. Yes, he noticed it. It was there. His children. Feeling dazed and confused, as he had just woken up from a very long sleep, he looked around for the source of what or who made him lose concentration. “ _ What  _ did you  _ just  _ do?”

“You were practically catatonic,” Obi-Wan said unapologetically, standing over him with his arms folded. “And we’re approaching Christophsis. You should prepare yourself for your gathering.”

Anakin blinked and stood up, scowling. “I was meditating,” he hissed. “It was  _ working _ . You could have let me be.”

“You were not meditating, you were daydreaming,” the Jedi scoffed. “If you were meditating, you would have been able to feel me calling you, I would not have had to pull you out myself.”

“I was fine. I was  _ more  _ than fine,” Anakin growled. “If you can’t stand me, don’t speak to me. Don’t stand close to me. I will do well without your foul mood, I have more to be concerned about,” he shoved the Jedi aside, so he could head to the cockpit, near Ahsoka and Qui-Gon for Obi-Wan’s safety. Anakin didn’t want to think of what he would do to the Jedi if he lost control and having them nearby made him feel slightly in control.

He was still reeling with his connection to Padmé. Of course, Sidious had her in stasis. This way, she was easier to control and he wouldn’t dare hurt her while she was pregnant. Not until the children were born.  _ Children.  _ He couldn’t wrap his head around that news. He didn’t know what to feel. Anakin barely acknowledged that she was pregnant, let alone with twins. Rubbing a hand across his face, he put it behind him. Padmé was his focus. Pregnant or not, it didn’t matter, he needed to save her.


	3. I Don't Want to Hurt No More

“We don’t know how much time it will take you, but time is of the essence,” Qui-Gon warned as the ship landed on the crystalline surface of Christophsis. “Are you ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” Anakin nodded. “I’ll try to be as fast as I can. The Force is the one that will be in control, but I’ll do my best.”

“Wish I could go with you,” Ahsoka murmured

“Thanks, Snips, but I’ll be fine,” he smiled briefly at her. “Take care of them while I’m in there,” he nodded towards the older Jedi.

“Of course. May the Force be with you, Anakin.”

“May the Force be with all of you,” he said before placing his hood over his head and abandoning the ship, towards the location of the cave that would soon put him to the test and fear settled into his stomach. This was the Force. If there was anything that could scare him, it was the Force. As he approached, he could hear voices calling to him, swirling around him like mist.

_ Anakin. _

_ Son. _

_ Vader. _

_ Skywalker. _

_ Lord of the Sith. _

_ Ani. _

_ Apprentice. _

_ Love.  _

_ Slave. _

_ Chosen One. _

The closer he got to the cave entrance, the more the names repeated, pounding in his head. Anakin winced as he stepped inside of it, the words repeating themselves over and over in his head. The cave was dark in the beginning and he walked without really knowing where or which path he was taking. How long was this? What would it take to find a crystal? To pass the Force’s test?

_ Anakin!  _ The voice seemed to change, it sounded lighter and more feminine. 

He looked around, wildly, to see where the voice was coming from. It was so familiar and he felt a pang of desperation. He had to find a source for it. “Hello?” He shouted, but everything around him was still pitch black. “Who’s there?”

_ Anakin, help me!  _ That was Padmé’s voice, there was no question of it. Her voice echoed off the walls of the cavern.

“Padmé?!”

_ Anakin!  _ The voice called again.

A sense of panic filled him. “Where are you?  _ Padmé! _ ”

_ You’ll never save her,  _ an older male voice cackled. Sidious. The crystal walls seemed to darken, the Force shifted, becoming cold and ugly.  _ You cannot save anyone. _

“I will save her,” he growled, his eyes flashing momentarily yellow. “I will save her. I will save everyone from you. You’re the real monster. You made me believe lies,” he snarled, the Force vibrating around him. “I am no longer your puppet,” Anakin declared and his eyes returned to a vibrant blue as the realization set in. He was no longer a puppet, there were no longer strings on him. 

Then he heard a high pitched sort of humming, a frequency that made his bones vibrate. Was it his crystal, calling to him?  _ Anakin!  _ Padmé’s voice cried out again, and this time he could tell that it was coming from the opposite direction of the humming.  _ Anakin, please, help me! Don’t go! _

Anakin had to remind himself that the Force would test him. Padmé was on Imperial Center. On stasis. Taking a deep breath, he ignored the voice and moved towards the humming of the crystals. 

_ Anakin! _ Now his mother’s voice joined Padmé’s, just as desperate, just as urgent.

Wincing, he kept walking.  _ It’s not real, it’s not real, it’s not real.  _ The sound of Sidious laughing began to overwhelm the voices of his mother and his love. The walls turned a dark bloody red. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe. Over and over again.  _ Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.  _ Everything was an illusion. It was not real. It was a test. With his eyes closed, he focused and moved towards the humming that seemed to guide him, his steps. He focused on his breathing. He focused on the techniques of meditation that Ahsoka had told him. 

“Pathetic.”

He opened his eyes and took a step back. _ It couldn’t be _ . “Dooku.”

“You are somehow even more pathetic than you were the day I purchased you in Tatooine,” the old man scoffed, igniting his lightsaber. “My old Padawan couldn’t teach you anymore than the Emperor could. You’re no Chosen One. You’re barely a competent Force-wielder.”

“Your old Padawan?” Anakin frowned. “You mean Qui-Gon? You were a Jedi before?”

“They didn’t tell you?” Dooku chuckled. “I suppose they don’t trust you enough.”

“I don’t trust them either,” he replied. “You a test, is that it? I need to go through you?” He guessed.

“What makes you think you are worth testing?” The lightsaber rose up, pointing at the scar over Anakin’s eye. “You have been tested already. And you failed. You do not deserve a crystal. You do not deserve to save Amidala or to have those children. You deserve to die down here, knowing what a failure you are.”

Anakin gritted his teeth, anger began to boil in his blood. It was what the Force wanted after all. The Force wanted to break him. “I am a failure,” he said, suddenly, not caring about the lightsaber pointed at him. “I failed as a Sith. I would be a failure as a Jedi,” he realized. “Because I am neither of those things.” The old man narrowed his eyes, almost as if he was waiting for something more. “I am both,” he let out a laugh. “That is how I’m saving Padmé and the children she carries. Because I will wield both the light and the dark and I will be above any other force wielder of the Galaxy. Above you. Above your Padawan. Above Sidious.” Dooku’s form shimmered and flickered for a moment. “You can go now, Dooku, I’m not afraid of you.”

There was a moment of silence. Then Dooku opened his hand, dropping the lightsaber as he disappeared. And where the lightsaber should have landed, there was a single blue crystal, glowing in the dark.

He bent down to pick up the crystal with gentleness and rolled it between his fingers. It was beautiful. The light was so calm, so serene, but there was also something incredibly powerful about it. He tucked it into his robes and turned around to leave the cave, unaware of how long it had been. He was happy that he had passed the test. He was elated that he now had the main core for a new lightsaber, the one he was going to use to destroy Sidious. 

* * *

“He won’t make it.”

“You’re a real sleemo for thinking like that, you  _ want _ him to fail,” Ahsoka snapped at Obi-Wan irritably. “He’ll make it.”

“Have more faith, Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon said. “He’s our only hope.”

“You keep saying that, but I have seen nothing to put any weight behind that belief!” Obi-Wan scoffed. “He could blow us up, and you’d still be telling us he’s the Chosen One, and that it’s the will of the Force.”

“He’s learning. You can’t expect him that, after a decade of being under Sidious’ teachings and the dark side, he’s ready to accept our views,” Qui-Gon argued. “Besides, we both know what has you so upset,” he gave his Padawan a look.

“Do  _ not _ speak to me of that.”

“You should speak with him,” his Master said calmly. “It will make you feel better, Obi-Wan. Carrying that anger and resentment will not do you any good.”

“And what will telling him do? Does the Chosen One suddenly have the power to bring back the dead? Nothing will come of it.”

“Answers. You will get  _ answers.  _ Maybe then this subject will stop eating you,” Qui-Gon sighed, rubbing his forehead. “I don’t condone you for being upset, but I want you to understand the importance of Anakin’s power.”

“You do not need me to know his power. You don’t need me near him at all. Once we go back to base, I don’t intend to speak to him again.”

“Oh, look at that, he’s coming back right now,” Ahsoka interrupted, pointing through the viewport as Anakin emerged from the cavern entrance.

“He looks accomplished,” Qui-Gon noted. “Obi-Wan, you shouldn’t act so quickly on your temper. Give him a chance. For all of our sakes. We are stronger together and Sidious will exploit any weakness we might demonstrate.”

Obi-Wan said nothing, only looked on sullenly and folded his arms as Anakin made his way back into the ship. “Did you get it?” Ahsoka asked brightly, moving to Anakin’s side. “What am I saying, of course you did. Let me see, Skyguy!”

“Easy there, Snips,” Anakin looked at her amused. “What’s so exciting about a crystal?” He teased as he dug inside his robes before pulling the kyber crystal from one of the pockets. “Except mine. Mine is exciting,” he chuckled as he opened his hand to show them the bright blue crystal.

“I just like being right,” she said smugly. “I knew you could do it. Come on, let’s go get the supplies to make your saber.”

“Yes, please. As soon as possible. I need a new saber,” he said hotly. “You two look tense, is everything alright?” He eyed both Master and Padawan. Obi-Wan narrowed his eyes and turned away, heading for the pilot’s seat.

“He’s uncomfortable with this,” Qui-Gon lied. “He wants to go back to base.”

_ He’s uncomfortable with me.  _ Anakin thought to himself. “Then we should leave. We no longer have anything to do here.”

“Yes, I suppose so,” the older man nodded slowly. “Well done, Anakin.”

“Thank you,” he said with a small smile.

“Come on,” Ahsoka tugged at his arm. “Lightsaber time.”

* * *

He had forgotten how difficult it was to focus so much on building his lightsaber. But he had all the parts and he had the core. The bright blue crystal from Christophsis. He could do this. All he had to do was use the Force to make everything come together. He needed that to happen, he needed to save Padmé.

_ Almost. Almost there. I can feel it.  _ There was a sound, almost like a click as the pieces slid together, forming the hilt of his new saber. The design was vaguely similar to the one he’d had Vader, but with more of the silver metal showing around the grip, and a little more streamlined.

“Oh, finally,” he breathed as he took the hilt into his hands and felt an immediate connection.

“Careful. It would be a shame for it to blow up in your face.”

“I think you would love that,” he replied dryly, standing up, swirling the hilt. “What do you want, Obi-Wan?”

“At the moment, a sparring partner. Though Qui-Gon believes I need to talk to you about something that merits no discussion.” Obi-Wan produced his own lightsaber. “Shall we?”

“Are you looking for an opportunity to kill me?” Anakin raised his eyebrows. “Alright, let’s go. Let’s see if you can back up all that talk.”

“I am not like you,” Obi-Wan said coldly, taking a Soresu starting position. “I am not an indiscriminate murderer, I never have been.”

Anakin took a Djem So starting position. “You have to let that go. Everyone is aware of my past. It’s not going to change anything.”

“They’re aware of it, but they’ve all decided you deserve forgiveness because it’s convenient for them.” Obi-Wan swung his blade as he stepped forward. “I’m not so lenient.”

Their blades clashed. Anakin loved the new, bright color of his lightsaber. It was inspiring to him. “I wasn’t forgiven. There is a bigger subject to tackle than what Sidious made me for a decade,” he snapped and lunged. “You, however, are determined to focus on just that.”

“Because I know that you don’t actually  _ care _ ,” Obi-Wan grunted, pushing back against him as their sabers met again. “You don’t care how many people you took away from their loved ones.”

“You don’t know how I feel, stop making judgments without knowing who I am outside that prison,” Anakin pushed against him with his lightsaber, shoving him back. “I might not have cared before, but it’s different now. I am different.”

Obi-Wan’s eyes narrowed and without warning, he shoved Anakin with his full power in the Force, sending him flying back. “Siri Tachi.”

_ That  _ he was not expecting and he had underestimated Obi-Wan’s power in the Force. Groaning, Anakin got back to his feet. “Who in Sith hell is Siri Tachi?” He growled, annoyed.

“You know perfectly well who she is, you killed her.”

Anakin faced Obi-Wan’s anger for a minute before he understood where all of it came from. “Obi-Wan, Siri Tachi was never brought to Mustafar,” he turned his lightsaber off and placed the hilt at his belt. “I know all the names of the people that Sidious sent my way. She was not one of them. I didn’t touch a hair on her head.”

Obi-Wan shook his head, refusing to put away his own saber. “You’re lying.”

“No, I’m not,” Anakin shook his head. “If I had murdered Siri Tachi, I would tell you. You would deserve that and I gain nothing with lies. She never set foot on Mustafar. You can use the Force to check if I’m telling the truth. I won’t stop you.” The Jedi stared at him in silence and Anakin could feel the Force probing at his mind none too gently. “Alright, easy,” he scowled. “Don’t make me probe you, we both know how high my midi-chlorian count is.”

“Then where is she?” Obi-Wan’s voice was suddenly very small and childish as his lightsaber finally went out. “We were on Ryloth, defending a Rebel post, and they took her… we all knew Jedi were sent to you for execution.”

Anakin sighed and thought for a moment. “Not all of them,” he said. “I said she never came to Mustafar. I didn’t say I never heard her name. Because I have heard it before.”

“Don’t toy with me.”

“Any Jedi that showed the potential of being brought to the Empire’s side, Sidious used them for his Inquisitors. The ones that he could break, so to speak. Siri Tachi was one of them. As far as I know, she is still with the Inquisitors, but that is a matter that we have to research,” Anakin explained. “There is a good chance she is still alive, Obi-Wan.”

“Being an Inquisitor is not life,” Obi-Wan whispered hollowly, looking away. “She would never let herself become something like that.”

“People change. If she wanted to survive, she had to adapt to her new lifestyle. Try to focus on the positive. She might still be alive and you have a chance to save her,” Anakin said. “I would like to help you. If you let me.”

“Why?”

“Do you have to question it?” Anakin rolled his eyes. “Can’t you just accept that I’m willing to help you?”

“Considering my behavior, you have absolutely no reason to offer me any kind of help,” the Jedi pointed out.

“You thought I had killed the woman you loved. I’m surprised you haven’t killed me in my sleep,” he joked. “If I was in your position, I would have attacked first and asked questions later. You’re helping me with Padmé. I want to help you with Siri. It’s the right thing to do.”

Obi-Wan hesitated, then let out a long sigh. “I am sorry.”

“No need. I was a Sith. I murdered people. I’m not proud of it and I deserved the toughness you showed. Clean slate, how does that sound?” He offered, extending a hand. Obi-Wan took it slowly and firmly.

“Clean slate,” he agreed. “And in the interest of transparency, there  _ was _ once something between myself and the Duchess of Mandalore, but it has long since faded.”

“And Korkie Kryze, future Duke of Mandalore?” Anakin quipped. Obi-Wan looked at him with a blank, unimpressed expression.

“Stop spending so much time listening to Ahsoka.”

He laughed. “Alright. I guess that it’s something everyone will wonder for the rest of our days,” he mused. “Now that you don’t want to kill me anymore, can we actually spar? I do need to get used to the lightsaber and my technique needs to be different since I no longer use the Darth Vader suit and my old technique heavily relied on the heaviness and the size of the suit.”

“I think we can manage that.” Obi-Wan retrieved his saber with a bit of a guilty smile. “I suppose it’s really the difference between an X-Wing fighter and an ugly, lumbering thing like the Death Star, isn’t it?”

“It is, but the Death Star…” Anakin trailed off. “Oh. Oh, I know to show Sidious we’re coming for him.”

“You… you do?”

“Yes, I do,” he looked excited. “We’re going to blow up the Death Star.”

“You’re insane, that’s suicidal.”

“Not if we do it right. That’s why we all have to come together and come up with a foolproof plan. We can have a sparring session later. We need to find Qui-Gon.”

“Force help us, you’re serious.”

“Come on, you have to be a little bored,” an easy smile crept into his face. “Let the fun begin.”


	4. If I Could Turn Back the Clock

“You really think that it’s possible?” Padmé leaned her head against Anakin’s shoulder as they stared out over the dream landscape of the Lake Country. She’d been thrilled that he’d visited at this moment, it was a way for him to see more of her home. And once Sidious was defeated, they’d be able to see it in reality together too, along with their children. “Destroying something so massive?”

“Yes. It will send a clear message to Sidious. I’m coming for him and I’m not holding back. I will rescue you and he will be defeated,” he kissed the top of her head. “Then we’ll both come here and be at peace, at last, with our love.”

“And the children,” she added, rubbing her stomach, which looked bigger now. “I think they’re getting stronger, sometimes I swear I can see them.”

“Of course, the children too,” he said with a forced smile. “As long as they are healthy. I’ll get to you as soon as possible. I’m trying my best.”

“Breathe, Ani,” she said softly, running a hand over his chest. “Just breathe.”

“I miss you. So much. And I need you. I hate that it’s taking us so long. I hate that he still has you,” he confessed.

“I miss you too, and I hate this just as much as you do, but we must keep the faith.” She held him tightly. “What else  _ can _ I do?”

“Wait for me,” he said simply. “We’ll be together soon, I promise.” Above them, the sunny skies suddenly became overcast, and her grip on him grew tighter.

“What’s happening?”

He knew that presence and he gritted his teeth. “Sidious. He knows we are connecting through the Force. He’s trying to break it.”

“No.” She shook her head, panic starting to set in. “No, no, no, no, no, I can’t be alone, I can’t lose the one link I have with you.”

“Calm down, he won’t be able to. I’m strong enough to push him out.”

Anakin focused and concentrated on pushing Sidious’ energy away from their own. He was trying to infiltrate their connection, breaking it and Anakin was afraid of how far he would go to do so. Padmé gripped his hand and he felt an unexpected surge of strength. The skies cleared and the sun was shining on them again. “There. He’s gone,” he whispered, nuzzling her cheek.

“Hurry,” she whispered, kissing his neck softly. “I’m worried now.”

“Just a little longer here,” he hugged her tighter. “I miss you. I miss you so much.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too. You are everything to me. Everything,” he whispered in her ear before the connection was abruptly interrupted and he felt breathless. “No. No, no, no, no.”

“What’s happening? What’s wrong?” Her hands gripped his, desperate to keep a hold of him. “Is it  _ him _ again?”

“He’s blocking the Force. I don’t know how. But he is and I can’t hold on,” he shook his head, feeling her slipping away. “I’ll find you. I’ll always find you.”

“Ani…” She took a shuddering gasp as her eyes suddenly flew open. Through the warped transparisteel of her stasis pod, she saw Palpatine glaring down at her, along with a blue-skinned man in an Imperial uniform. A Chiss, judging by his red eyes.

“If it weren’t for my heirs, I would kill you, Amidala,” he hissed. “They still need you, however,” he was clearly displeased. “So I just had to find a way to stop you and the traitor from communicating. Admiral Thrawn here has been rather helpful in providing that solution.” She glared back at both of them, not saying a word. He wouldn’t get the satisfaction from her.

“I only apologize for the inconvenience it causes you, your Majesty.” Thrawn’s hand reached out to brush a brown reptilian creature that was sitting atop the stasis pod. “Ysalamiri are indiscriminate little creatures.”

Ysalamiri… she’d heard of them. Creatures that made it impossible for anyone to use the Force. They were blocking her babies to cut off the connection. “How do you know this won’t dampen their Force abilities permanently?” she challenged.

“Ysalamiri are useful to block to Force, they do not cause permanent damage,” Thrawn explained. “Besides, they are only needed until the children are born and that won’t be long from now, so there are no risks. It’s a completely safe measure.”

Padmé looked down to see how her stomach protruded from the white medical gown and swallowed nervously. She looked big. It might just have been the fact that she was having twins, but it was impossible to be certain. “How long?” she whispered.

“Four more months,” Sidious drawled out. “It will pass by in the blink of an eye. Especially when you’ll be in a dreamless sleep until it happens.”

“Anakin will stop you,” she promised defiantly. “You won’t win. You won’t take our babies.”

“He failed once. He will fail again.” Sidious vowed, before he nodded at the medical droid to restart the stasis process.

“Your overconfidence…” her eyelids began to drop as the sedative entered her bloodstream, “will be your downfall.”

* * *

Anakin took a deep breath. “I’ve lied about something,” he said bluntly to the people he had gathered. Shmi, Ahsoka, Qui-Gon, and Obi-Wan. They all needed to know the full truth.

“Well, that’s not dramatic at all,” Ahsoka said dryly, taking a drink of blue milk. “What did you lie about? I’m sure it’s not  _ that  _ bad.”

“In my meditation, I’ve been able to connect with Padmé. In places that we thought of. That’s why I always take so long,” he started, biting his lower lip. “Except we were abruptly pulled apart and I can’t reach her anymore.”

“That’s impossible,” Qui-Gon announced bluntly. “Padmé was slightly stronger in the Force than the average human, but her midi-chlorian count isn’t nearly high enough to sustain such communication.”

“It’s possible when she is… she… umm,” Anakin looked around the expectant faces, “she is expecting. My child. Children, I mean. She is pregnant. With my baby.  _ Babies.  _ Twins,” he cringed at how awkward he felt.

“ _ What?” _

_ “Twins?” _

“Oh, Anakin,” Shmi pulled him into a hug, rubbing his back.

Anakin hugged his mother back. “It’s why Sidious took her. It’s why he has her. The children are already powerful in the Force. He knows it.”

“How much time?” Obi-Wan asked grimly, and Ahsoka looked at him in confusion. “How much time before those children are born?”

“Four months,” Anakin sighed.

“So all this time, we’ve been operating on a deadline we didn’t know about.”

“Obi-Wan, hush,” Shmi scolded.

“No, he’s right. I’m sorry. I should have confessed before. I just… didn’t know how,” Anakin said. “I can’t connect to her anymore, which leads me to believe that something changed.”

“Does she know about our plans for the Death Star? Is it possible  _ he _ knows?” Qui-Gon pressed urgently.

“He doesn’t know. He could interrupt it, but he couldn’t listen to us. That, I am sure of. Listen, I am sorry that I didn’t say anything sooner, but I didn’t think it would take us this long. Besides, this is just a small detail, nothing changes because of it. As long as we don’t have any delays in our plans, we’ll be fine.”

“Go check the comms, see if there’s been any word on the plans for the Death Star,” Shmi suggested. “I’d like a moment with my son, if you don’t mind.” The three Jedi exchanged glances, then nodded, leaving the conference room so that only the Skywalkers remained. “Did you know when we found you?” Shmi asked, placing her hands on Anakin’s cheeks.

“I did,” he said quietly. “It was the last thing I remember him saying.”

“And you’re certain she’s safe as long as she’s pregnant?”

“He wants the babies.” He lifted his shoulders. “Until she gives birth, she’s safe.”

“And are you alright?”

He didn’t answer right away. “Yes. No. Maybe,” with a deep breath, his shoulders fell forward. “I don’t know. I’m trying not to think about it.”

She pursed her lips. “I don’t know if that’s the right way to go about this, Ani.”

“What am I supposed to do?” Anakin asked, clearly lost.

“I don’t know, but ignoring the fact that you’re going to be a father might make things difficult for you when we save Padmé and the babies come,” she pointed out gently. “I understand it probably seems foreign to you, given that you don’t get to experience this pregnancy with her, but it’s something every parent has to do. I certainly did.”

“I know, but I just think that with her, it’s going to be easier, you know? To come to terms with this, with the fact that I’m going to be a… a father. Everything happened so quickly. Our relationship was a whirlwind, but I love her and I want to be with her, I just never thought about children. Not now. Not in the foreseeable future. Maybe a few years from now and I just… I can’t decide if this is something I want and I feel awful for it,” he confessed emotionally. “She’s going to hate me.”

“There was a time when I felt the same way,” she admitted softly. “When I first learned I was carrying you, I wanted it to be a dream. Or a joke. I was alone, a slave, and I didn’t know how I’d even become pregnant. I didn’t think there was anything I could offer you.”

“From what I remember, you were amazing,” he said with a soft smile. Thankfully, his memories were returning little by little and he could remember a lot from his time in Tatooine with his mother. “I just want to save her first. Then think about her pregnancy after. I don’t think I can cope with everything at once,” he said miserably. “I’m still learning. How to be human,” he joked, because it was what Padmé used to say. “I need her to be able to learn this as well.”

“You can do it,” she promised tenderly, placing a kiss on his forehead. “I know that you can. But no more secrets, alright? There needs to be trust.”

“I’m not keeping anything else from you,” he smiled at the tenderness. “Thank you, Mom. For not judging me.”

“You’re my son and I love you, what else does there need to be?” Shmi asked with a smile.

“I’m just not used to that, it takes a while,” he admitted, laying his head on her shoulder. “I love you too, by the way.”

“I know.”

* * *

“We’re getting a transmission!” Ahsoka yelled breathlessly as she ran down the hall. “Anakin! Obi-Wan! We’re wanted in the command room, it could be news about the Death Star! Come on!”

“What?” Anakin left his room in a rush. “I’m going. I’m going. Obi-Wan! Hurry!” He shouted as he followed Ahsoka to the command room. “Tell me everything!”

“Anakin, breathe,” Shmi reminded him as she indicated a seat. From across the holo-table, Mon Mothma and Bail Organa looked at him warily.

“There was a certain amount of tension and haggling with other Rebel cells, but we have finally managed to get a copy of the plans for the Death Star,” Qui-Gon explained, opening the file in question so that Anakin could see. “We’re looking now for weaknesses that can be exploited.”

“We’ve found nothing yet, and it could take weeks,” Organa admitted grimly. “Time we don’t have if we want to save Padmé.”

"The weapon has a nearly flawless design," Anakin admitted. "However it is not indestructible. The core, while well protected, is not free of weaknesses. See here?" He pointed at the center of the schematics. "This thing is the size of. A planet. It takes several engines to keep it running. All of them are protected by panels, nearly impossible to reach. But… lightsabers have cut through worse and if we are able to cut the panels and plant explosives near the engines, all of them, we might have a shot of taking it down."

“Even if you managed to get in and do what you’re saying, you’d be caught before you could get back out,” Mothma said dismissively. “It’s too risky. The Jedi are not expendable. No life is, but there are so few...”

“You’re assuming I’ll get caught,” Anakin raised one eyebrow cockily. “I know the Death Star. I know these schematics and you are underestimating the power of the Force we all have together. If this is our chance, we have to take it.” His mother bit her lip and looked down, but said nothing.

“How would you get in? They won’t just invite you,” Organa pointed out, but he was leaning forward, slightly interested. “You told us the Emperor doesn’t know about this plan, but he does know you’re alive. For all we know, this is a trap, meant to catch you.”

“If we keep thinking that, we’re stuck. We won’t be able to do anything,” Anakin said, slightly irritated. “Hundreds of ships board during the day. We can infiltrate one of them. A supply ship, perhaps. They are the ones with the least security.”

“Or,” Ahsoka cleared her throat. “I might have another idea?”

“What is it, young one?” Qui-Gon asked.

“Well, like Anakin said, there are engines, right? A lot of them, because this thing needs a lot of energy.”

“Yes, and?” He prompted.

“That energy has to go somewhere,” she said slowly, moving to point at the center of the plans as they continued to rotate above the table. “Every ship has exhaust ports, why would the Death Star be any different?”

“You think we sneak into one of those ports?” Anakin asked, staring at the blueprints as if he was memorizing everything.

“I think we might not need to sneak in at all. Like you said, Senator Mothma, Jedi are in short supply, this thing probably wasn’t built to take the Force into account. If we sent a bomb in through one of the exhaust ports using the Force, maybe that would be enough to blow the thing to bits.”

“That  _ could  _ be easier,” Anakin said thoughtfully.

“What about the innocent people aboard?” Shmi asked, her brow furrowed. “If you did go inside and placed the bombs at the engine, you could start the evacuation protocol, right? It has one, doesn’t it? Give people a chance to save themselves. Many work for the Empire because they have no other chance. It seems unreasonable to kill everyone so cruelly.”

“Then we run the risk of the bombs being discovered and deactivated.”

“I’m starting to think none of you actually  _ want _ to blow up the Death Star,” Obi-Wan remarked somewhat dryly.

“We can initiate a remote evacuation and we can put a timer on the bomb we throw into the exhaust port,” Anakin said. “That would give everyone a chance.”

“I still don’t like it,” Shmi muttered.

“If we’re doing the exhaust port plan, this is where to do it,” the old general whose name Anakin still hadn’t learned spoke up. “It’s unshielded, and Commander Tano is right. Getting a photon torpedo in there could set off a chain reaction. But an evacuation wouldn’t be possible in such circumstances. And however distasteful it might be, destroying it now will save far more lives than would be taken if we don’t do this.”

Shmi stood, scowling and left the meeting. Anakin sighed. It wasn’t pretty, and Padmé would probably react the same way as his mother, but it had to be done. “Then I think we have ourselves a plan. Let’s start preparing everything we need in order to execute it.”

“Make sure you all spend time in the X-Wing simulators, or the real thing,” Organa instructed the assembled Force-users. “It’s more than likely that this will be our only chance. Jan, Mon, with me?” The general and the ex-Senator stood, following him out of the room, leaving Anakin alone with the Jedi.

“None of us are happy with this,” Qui-Gon said. “And if we had more time, perhaps things would be different. But General Dodonna is right in thinking that we must destroy the Death Star as quickly as possible.”

“I know,” Anakin confessed. “I just understand where my Mom is coming from but I also know that this is a chance we can’t pass on and while not ideal, it’s necessary. I’ll speak to her later. Meanwhile, show me the X-Wings. I would love to be able to get accustomed to them.”

“You’ll be flying circles around the rest of us in no time,” Ahsoka predicted as she gestured for him to follow her.

“Of course I will be, is there any doubt?” He scoffed arrogantly before winking at her. 

“Don’t be smug, Skyguy, or I’ll get you back when I’m babysitting for you.”

“Ah,” he acknowledged, nodding. “Yes. That.”

“Training,” Obi-Wan said, clearing his throat, “takes priority, I believe. We can discuss other matters later, but the Death Star cannot wait.”

“I agree,” Anakin nodded. “Training. Details later. Come on, Snips, let’s see if you can beat me in a lightsaber duel.”

“Oh, come on, that’s not fair, you’ve been doing it longer than I have, old-timer.”

As she skipped off, he followed her, offended and Obi-Wan was left behind, sighing and wondering what had he done so wrong to be stuck teaching those two.


	5. Just a Little Closer Now

“There’s been a slight change in plans,” Qui-Gon announced as he stood in front of the assembled squadrons of pilots, next to General Dodonna. “Several high ranking officers are scheduled to be on the Death Star in the next few days, and one of them might have vital information about the Emperor and Senator Amidala. Thus, the first wave is to be modifying their plan of attack to a diversionary one, to give cover while we try to get that information.”

“Isn’t that risky?”

“It’s necessary,” Anakin said. “It shouldn’t take too long to obtain the information, not many of us will be on board. Just myself, Commander Tano and General Kenobi.”

“We’ll have a comm with us, and ideally, we’ll be able to give the signal as soon as we’re out of there,” Obi-Wan added. “At which point, the second wave will start.”

“But what if—”

“You’re probably not going to get the shot,” Ahsoka cut off the cadet who was trying to speak. “It’s a tiny target, and the exhaust port will be running. The Force is practically a requirement. Besides, if you miss it, the Imperials catch on to what we’re doing, and the target gets that much harder to hit.”

“As much as you want to, please don’t be the hero,” Anakin said. “We appreciate your work and dedication but we don’t need your sacrifice. If we do things as planned, no lives on our side will be lost. So let’s all follow the rules, alright?” There was a murmur among the other pilots before they all nodded slowly.

“We start in twelve hours, make sure you’re ready,” Dodonna warned. “This is the single most important moment of the Alliance’s existence.”

“Having said that, you are dismissed. We’ll meet back when it’s time,” Qui-Gon announced.

“You should probably sleep before we head out,” Ahsoka suggested, rubbing Anakin’s back as they got up from their seats. “You’ve got these dark circles under your eyes…”

“I won’t be able to rest, Ahsoka, not until I save Padmé. I think I might meditate for a while. Try to have a clear connection to the Force. Stars know I need it for this.”

“Yeah, but you also need sleep, or when you get to Padmé, she’s gonna be mad at you for not taking care of yourself,” she argued. “Anakin, come on.”

“It’s a good sign since it means she’ll be alright,” Anakin said. “Ashoka, I know you mean well, but I am unable to rest. Especially since we’re about to launch an attack on the Empire.”

“Okay, fine,” she sighed. “If that’s really what you want, I can’t exactly stop you.”

“But you’re sweet for trying,” he kissed her forehead. “You can meditate with me if you don’t have plans.”

“Okay, I’m in,” she sighed. “But only because I like you better than Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon.”

“I can’t imagine why,” he chuckled. “They’re good people, though. I know I was hard on them at the beginning, but that was just… a defense mechanism.”

“Well, Obi-Wan was pretty hard on you too,” Ahsoka pointed out.”For no good reason.”

“He had a reason,” Anakin replied. “We talked about it and I can’t judge him for treating me like that initially. But all is clear now. I think we’re bonding,” he laughed.

“ _ Disgusting. _ ”

Anakin snorted. “Don’t worry, you’re still my favorite, Snips.”

“And yet when I say you should sleep, you completely ignore me.”

“Because I’m older and therefore wiser.”

“Older, yes. Wiser, I’m not so sure.”

“What about this… if you beat me in a duel, I’ll make an effort to rest. Think you’re up to the challenge?”

She huffed, folding her arms and shaking her head, making her montrals swing back and forth. “You know I can’t beat you, you’re a better duelist than I am.”

“I might be, but you’re getting better incredibly fast. I almost break a sweat when we practice,” he nudged her. “You have a lot of potential, Snips and I’m really proud that you’re evolving so much.”

“Okay, fine, we’ll duel. But only because I  _ really _ want to make you take a nap.”

“Good,” he grinned.

* * *

“It’s bigger than I thought,” Ahsoka murmured, staring up at the Death Star. “We’re gonna have to be  _ really _ fast.”

“That is an understatement.”

“Any chance Sidious panicked and moved her here for safekeeping after he found out you’re alive?”

“Doubtful,” Obi-Wan shook his head grimly. “That would involve us being luckier than we are.”

“I want you all to promise me, no one touches Sidious. He’s mine. I’m the one who’s tearing him limb by kriffing limb,” Anakin said darkly.

“Yessir, Skyguy, sir,” Ahsoka said in a mock salute. “I mean, I don’t think he’s here, wouldn’t we have sensed him by now?”

“Not necessarily, he cloaked his presence for years while he was a Senator and then Chancellor,” Obi-Wan pointed out. “And Anakin, be careful. You’ve come too far to relapse now.”

“This will not be a relapse. This will be the key to my complete freedom,” Anakin said. “I need to be the one to kill him. For everything he's done to me. To my family. He needs to pay.”

“Don’t, Obi-Wan,” Ahsoka warned softly. “He’s right, he needs this.”

“Killing the Emperor is one thing, bloody vengeance is another.”

“Well, you’re going to have to live with the fact that for me, it will be both,” Anakin stated dryly.

“This is not something we should be focusing on right now,” Ahsoka sighed. “We have bigger fish to catch,” she nodded towards the Death Star. “May the Force be with all of us.”

Obi-Wan sighed and nodded, looking at Anakin briefly. “You’re certain they’ll pull us in with the tractor beam once we’re in range?”

“Definitely. They are nothing if not rigorous. Their head is on the line.”

“Then you two get hidden. I’ll join you once we’re pulled in. Once they’ve searched us, we move out.” Obi-Wan flipped a few switches on the control panel.

Anakin nodded at the command and tugged Ahsoka to their hidden place. He felt a bubble of anxiety inside of him, but he ignored it. He was closer than never to save Padmé and to hurt Sidious. This plan had to work. They couldn’t fail. They wouldn’t.

Ahsoka reached out and took his hand, squeezing it gently as they waited.  _ It’ll be okay,  _ she thought through the Force.  _ We can do this. _ The door opened again as Obi-Wan slipped in next to them.

“We’re being pulled in now. Are you projecting your shields?”

“Yes,” Anakin confirmed. “They won’t know we’re inside.”

“They will if we keep whispering,” Ahsoka hissed. “Shhh.” Obi-Wan rolled his eyes but nodded. They sat waiting in the hidden storage closet until they felt the ship settle into the loading bay and the sound of heavy footsteps began to approach.

“It looks abandoned, my lady.”

“Someone flew this ship here,” a sibilant voice snarled and the cold presence of a Dark Side user grew closer. “They must be on here somewhere.”

“We’ll keep looking, Lady Ventress.”

_ Ventress.  _ The name was vaguely familiar. He knew she was one of Sidious’ puppets and maybe she was the one with the information to save Padmé. He remained calm, though, he was not going to ruin their chances. While their hidden spot was undetectable, he wouldn’t put it past Ventress to start feeling out with the Force and if she had a lightsaber, well, nothing was holding her back from sliding it through the metal and cut one of their limbs off.

Ahsoka covered her mouth, trying to muffle the sound of her breathing as Ventress passed them. “Don’t tell me you somehow let them pass you by before we entered the ship,” she hissed, and they heard the sound of someone getting flung against the wall. “Idiots! Spread out! Find them! You three,” she paused, “stay here and keep looking.”

Focusing, Anakin was able to use the Force to cause a distraction outside the ship, small so Ventress didn’t catch the sense of his presence, but powerful enough to make them scramble outside. He hoped it was enough for them to ignore the ship all together. It was going to be difficult, with the Death Star on high alert of intruders, but first, they needed to leave their spot if they wanted to blow it up. The footsteps retreated and Obi-Wan exhaled, pushing open the door.

“That made things a little more complicated,” he said as they stepped out, gripping his lightsaber. “Should we deal with the three left on here?”

“I’m not going to fit in a stormtrooper uniform, if that’s what you’re thinking,“ Ahsoka deadpanned.

“Yes, you are too short,” Anakin quipped. “No. If we start fighting right now, it won’t end. We should only confront stormtroopers when it becomes absolutely necessary. Besides, they are easy enough to mind-trick if needed.”

“We all have our comms,” Obi-Wan pointed out, “so do you think we can feasibly separate and regroup without too much trouble? We would cover more ground that way.”

“Yes. Agreed,” Anakin nodded. “Ahsoka, remember… stealth. Don’t be seen. Don’t be heard. They are alert now, yes, but if we start fighting, it’s going to be chaos and we have people depending on us not to die.”

“I’ll make you proud, Skyguy.”

“I know, Snips, just be careful.”

“Anakin?”

“Yes, Obi-Wan?”

“Follow your own advice too,” the Jedi said wisely, raising one eyebrow.

Anakin rolled his eyes. “Ventress is mine. If you see her, warn me. I know exactly how to handle the likes of her.”

“Aw, but that’s no fun for us,” Ahsoka complained, and Obi-Wan gave her a pointed look. “Ugh,  _ fine.” _

“Move out,” the older man ordered, and he and Ahsoka split off from Anakin into two different hallways.

Anakin sighed, wishing them luck through the Force and hesitated for a moment, sensing Ventress’ Force signature. When he caught her, he followed through the left hallway, careful to be aware of the stormtroopers patrolling and avoiding the cameras, by using the blindspots. He had studied the security system thoroughly, to know what cameras to avoid and hallways to keep away and what rounds the troopers were doing. Saving Padmé started with blowing up the Death Star and Anakin was not going to allow anything to jeopardize it.

When the first stormtrooper noticed him, Anakin was quick and mind-tricked the clone into taking a little nap. He was close to Ventress and he needed the element of surprise. He heard her yell orders at the clones and ducked into a hidden corner, waiting for them to disperse. When all units had moved out, he entered the room, locking the door with the Force and holding Ventress up in the air, with a classic, Vader-like move. An invisible fist holding her by the throat.

“Hello, Lady Ventress. I think it’s time for us to have a little chat.”

“You’re Vader?” she scoffed, glaring at him despite the chokehold he still had her in. “I don’t know why I’m surprised. The Emperor said you’d be craven enough to rely on tricks like this.”

“Although my suit made me look that much menacing, don’t underestimate the rules I’m willing to break and what I am capable of doing for what I want,” he tightened the hold, just for good measure. “You’re his new apprentice?” He raised one amused eyebrow. “His standards got really low. Even for him.”

“You’re hardly one to talk,” she hissed, “given how you betrayed him and failed in the purpose of being a Sith.”

“He told you I failed?” Anakin scoffed. “You are a fool if you believe his words. He doesn’t even intend on keeping you around for much longer. What did he promise you? Eternal power? Wealth beyond your imagination? Respect?” He said in a provoking manner. “Once he has the apprentice he wants, he will not hesitate in decapitating you,” he squeezed her before letting her fall to the ground.

“I  _ am _ the Apprentice he wants,” she said, rubbing her throat. “I have been loyal. Dedicated. Unwavering.”

“Blah, blah, blah, you’re a temporary replacement,” Anakin hissed. “His last one if I have anything to say about it,” he muttered darkly. “Or has he kept you in the dark of why he is keeping Padmé Amidala alive?”

“You deluded little fool,” Ventress sprang to her feet, igniting her lightsabers. “Amidala was killed when the palace on Mustafar was destroyed. A disgraceful death for a disgraceful traitor.”

Anakin smiled coldly at her, holding off igniting his own lightsaber for now. “ _ I' _ _m_ deluded?” He shook his head. “Sidious kidnapped Padmé and is keeping her in stasis at Coruscant, right under your nose. You know why?” He took a step closer to her. “She is pregnant. With my children. Now, I have nearly thirty thousand midi-chlorians, can you imagine my children? They are the real apprentices he wants. It’s why she is alive. It’s why he doesn’t care who replaces me for now because, in his mind, he already has the apprentices he craves for. The only thing is, I’ll kill him before he lays a finger on them,” his eyes glowed gold for a brief, dark moment and the Force vibrated with his meaning. “You’re disposable, Ventress.”

“You will not fool me with such an absurd lie, Vader.” But he saw the twitch in her arm, the shift in her posture. Part of her believed it, or at least part of her now doubted Sidious.

“I’ll allow you a peek inside my mind,”  _ before I end you.  _ “Just for you to know how much of a puppet you have been.”

“Or I could just kill you now.” She charged at him, blades spinning.

He ignites his lightsaber, in time to block her attack. It was weaker than he expected “Oh well, if you wish to die in doubt,” he pushed against the lightsabers. “Now, you’re giving me all the information that I want.”

“In your dreams, Vader,” she snarled. “I’m not like you. I don’t turncoat for a pretty face.”

“Aw, you called me pretty,” he teased darkly, before applying some of the new moves Obi-Wan had taught him and catching her off-guard. “You’re not really my type, though.”

“Nor are you mine. But I will like seeing you dead.”

“You’re going to give me all the security schematics of the Imperial Palace,” Anakin paused, launching an attack at her. “And then I’ll see about giving you a painless death.”

“I’m going to make sure your death is anything  _ but _ painless,” Ventress hissed, pushing back against him.

The two went back and forth for a few moments before Anakin was able to disarm her in the most literal sense of the word. “Ready to talk?” He quipped viciously. “You will give me everything I need to access the Imperial City’s security and make sure I kill your master.”

She seethed and glared up at him, clearly fighting back tears of pain. He could feel it, and her doubts, her anger, her confusion. “I won’t.” She tried to raise the hand she had left, clearly trying to choke him the way he’d done to her.

“You’re weak,” he said. “You won’t be able to do anything to me. But you can have revenge. Give me what I need and I’ll kill him.”

“Or you’ll betray me. I’m not giving you anything.”

“Don’t say I didn’t give you a chance,” he sighed, before separating her head from her body. “I hope Sith hell treats you well,” he muttered, annoyed and looked around the office for Ventress’ datapad. It would have the information he needed. Over the comms, he informed. “Ventress is dead. I have the info.”

“Copy that, we’re heading back now. I’ll pass along the news to Qui-Gon,” Obi-Wan replied. 

They were halfway done with their plan and Anakin was anxious to blow up the Death Star. The sooner he did, he sooner Sidious would know he was coming for him.

* * *

“Heavy fire incoming, twenty degrees!” Ahsoka warned over the comms as their X-Wings wove between the TIE fighters of the Empire. “I think they’re onto us!”

“Let’s give them some entertainment while the bomb is placed,” Anakin said.

“You got it, Skyguy. Take the lead, I’ll cover you.”

Flying made him feel alive and especially when the adrenaline was rushing through his veins as he dodged the fire and unleashed some of his own over the fighters. He was guided by the Force and the instinct. “Obi-Wan, how long will it take on your side?”

“We’re facing some complications,” the older Jedi answered. “We may need to take the shot directly.”

“That’s too dangerous! What kind of complications?”

“The connection between the detonator and the explosive has been disrupted. They’re trying to get it back online now.”

“Have them work faster. I’ll entertain the fighters. Shooting directly will most likely wipe you out, so don’t even try it.”

“I’m prepared to give my life if it means we’d win.”

“Yeah, well, we’re not prepared to lose you just yet,” Ahsoka shot back.

“Stop being a martyr, Obi-Wan,” Anakin complained at the same time. 

“Nobody’s dying,” Qui-Gon stated, clearly a little annoyed. “Our technicians are working as fast as they can. Keep those fighters away, you two.”

“Copy that. Anakin, on your left!”

Anakin dodged and flew over the fighter, firing and watching it blow up in front of him. “Thanks, Snips.”

“Any time.”

“Obi-Wan, get that thing inside the Death Star. No one is dying today,” Anakin urged. 

“No one on our side, anyway.”

“Focus, you two!” Ahsoka reminded them. “Anakin, come on!”

After a few more minutes of fighting fighters that just kept showing up, Anakin had lost count of how many they were fighting, finally, good news. “The bomb is ready and we’re throwing it inside. Be ready to retreat at our command,” Qui-Gon’s voice came through the comms. “Do you all copy?”

“This is Tano, I copy.”

“Skywalker. Copy.”

“Obi-Wan?” Qui-Gon prompted. “Obi-Wan, do you copy?”

“Kenobi, copy. My apologies, I had a little trouble with the last fighter. I am ready to leave this system.”

“Good. Move out and prep for detonation,” Dodonna warned.

Moments later, Anakin was watching as the Death Star imploded and with it, a small piece of the Empire. Sidious’ most prized weapon, gone. Now how was he going to threaten the systems? With a small but victorious smile, he said, “step one to the destruction of the Empire is done. It’s time for step two.”

_ We’re coming, Padmé. _


	6. The Light Defeated The Dark

“I suddenly have a bad feeling about this,” Ahsoka mumbled, tugging at the hood of her cloak. “Are we sure there weren’t any extra Jedi to come with us?”

“Just us,” Obi-Wan stated dryly. “There’s that part of being hunted and killed over the years, if you don’t recall.”

“I remember, but we’re about to go into the place that used to be our home. And it belongs to the enemy now. It feels wrong.” She looked over at Anakin. “You okay? You’ve been quiet.”

“I’m focused,” Anakin said, frowning. “I’m… trying to sense Padmé, or the babies, but I get static. It’s annoying me. I know they are here.”

“Sidious must have found some way to shield them,” Obi-Wan pointed out. “But we have the full schematics thanks to your encounter with Ventress.”

“I need to find him,” he said coldly. “His life ends today, I’m making sure of it.”

“I’ll tell you what I  _ can _ feel in there,” Ahsoka added, reaching for her lightsaber, “Inquisitors. All over the place. Makes me feel sick.”

“You deal with them,” Anakin said to his companions. “I’ll find the Emperor.” He took off as he sensed around the Temple. Hand on the hilt of his lightsaber, he knew his former Master was waiting for him. Sidious was no fool, he would feel Anakin’s Force signature and undoubtedly be expecting their duel.

“I feel we should stay together,” Ahsoka protested.

“Let him go,” Obi-Wan said with a sigh. “This is his destiny.”

“But, Obi-Wan—”

“Inquisitors. Everywhere. They are our job now. That is the help we can give him.” Obi-Wan drew his own lightsaber. “Let’s go.” 

Ahsoka drew both of her lightsabers. “They’re close,” she mumbled. “They are waiting for their chance to pounce on us.”

“Let them. We’ll be ready,” Obi-Wan replied calmly. “Do you remember your training?”

“Yes,” she said, biting her lip hesitantly.

“Then you will be fine. May the Force be with you, Anakin.”

Out of the shadows, six lightsabers were initiated and six Inquisitors jumped up to form a circle around the two Jedi. Obi-Wan and Ahsoka immediately adopted a back-to-back position in order to protect each other but still be able to fight against the six Inquisitors that now surrounded them.

“If we make it through this, I want to be a Master,” Ahsoka mumbled.

“A Knight,” Obi-Wan offered before the first Inquisitor launched an attack and suddenly, it was a mix of sabers buzzing and clashing together.

“Oh,  _ come on!  _ I’ve clearly given my life to the cause, what more do you want?” she complained, jumping to dodge the spinning blade of another Inquisitor.

“Becoming an adult, for one thing,” Obi-Wan argued as he disarmed one Inquisitor, using the Force to throw him against the wall, knocking him unconscious.

“Look out!” Ahsoka threw her saber at a small flying droid directly over his head, slicing it into pieces.

“Be an actual Master to a Padawan, for another,” he added. “Thank you,” he quipped.

“That’s not fair, there aren’t any Padawans for me to teach,” she complained.

“If we win this fight, there will be,” Obi-Wan said. “Anakin is expecting two, for example. Maybe he’ll let you teach one of them.”

“Yeah, somehow, I don’t think  _ Padmé _ will be on board with that.” Ahsoka charged the Inquisitor who was controlling the droids, managing to pull the double-bladed saber from her grip and knock her to the ground.

“You can always ask her nicely,” Obi-Wan shrugged before making two Inquisitors collide in the air, throwing them back, having one last one in front of him. “You take care of that one on your side?” He questioned, frowning at the Inquisitor in front of him. Clad all in black, with a black mask, it was impossible to make out the features but there was something about the person standing there that was familiar.

“Got it.” Ahsoka kept the stolen saber activated along with her own, spinning both as she moved towards her foe.

As Obi-Wan started a duel with his own foe, he was not expecting the level of skill and expertise he found in the fighting style. Inquisitors were talented, that’s why the Emperor chose them, but they all had the same dueling style, the same weaknesses. Not this one though. It almost seemed like Form IV. Ataru. “Siri?” he asked, not daring to hope it might be true. Even after Anakin had told him that she might have survived, he hadn’t believed it. The Inquisitor stopped and removed her mask, revealing a short, blonde hairstyle and empty blue eyes mottled with yellow. 

His saber slipped from his hand, clattering to the ground as it deactivated. “He was right. It’s you.”

She took one step forward, frowning. “Obi-Wan?”

“I should have gone after you that day, I am so sorry, I thought you were dead.”

“I would have preferred to be dead,” she hissed. “I  _ am  _ dead,” she raised her lightsaber as she took an attack stance.

“Obi-Wan!” Ahsoka called out as she knocked the last of her opponents to the ground. “What are you doing?”

“I will not fight you, Siri,” Obi-Wan said, projecting nothing but serenity as he gazed at her.

“I will not be ashamed of killing an unarmed man,” she gritted her teeth, a muscle in her jaw twitching. “Especially not a traitor to the Empire.”

“Oh, Sith kriffing hell, do I have to do everything?” Ahsoka complained, moving to block Siri’s blade from hitting Obi-Wan’s neck.

“Ahsoka, what are you doing?” Obi-Wan asked alarmed.

The Togruta didn’t answer, instead lifting her knee to jab it into Siri’s stomach and hit the Inquisitor’s head with the hilt of her lightsaber, rendering her unconscious. “Saving your girl for you,  _ Great Negotiator,”  _ she mocked. “You can take her to our ship and lock her there. Anakin still needs us.”

Obi-Wan sighed, looking at the sleeping form of his lover. “Fine. But this does  _ not _ make you a Master,” he warned as he bent down to lift Siri over his shoulder.

Ahsoka shrugged. “We can speak about that after you get some and stop being dull,” she drawled. “Now go. I’ll wait for you here.”

* * *

“Long time no see, Master,” Anakin drawled out, entering the throne room. “How have you been? I heard you suffered a great loss recently,” he added with an evil glint to his eye.

“Your ability to survive is becoming a nuisance,” Sidious sighed from his throne. “How many times do I have to kill you?”

“I won’t give you a chance to do it again. However, I’ll kill you once and that will be enough,” he initiated the lightsaber, the blue blade coming to life. “Where is she?” Anakin demanded.

“Why would I tell you?”

“So I don’t make your death more painful,” Anakin hissed. “What did you do to her? Why can’t I feel her?”

Sidious chuckled, rising from the throne and leaning on a cane as he made his way down the steps. “Why don’t I show you?”

_ That was too easy. It’s a trap.  _ “Why don’t you tell me? Tell me why you kidnapped me. Why you lied and kept me in a prison made of metal for thirteen years. Tell me the truth!” He demanded.

“The truth,” Sidious repeated as he continued to walk from the daïs to one of the throne room doors. “The truth is that it was convenient. Convenient to have the one person who could have stopped me completely subservient to me.” Anakin’s grip on the hilt of his lightsaber tightened. “The Jedi’s precious Chosen One, a slave to the Dark Side.”

“How much do you regret putting Padmé Amidala in my way?” Anakin provoked. “Ruined your perfect plan, didn’t it?”

“It changed things, but I am nothing if not adaptable,” Sidious slipped through the doorway.

“If you think you’ll even get a glimpse of those babies, you are underestimating how much I’ve grown since you left me to die in Mustafar,” Anakin said, following him but still keeping his distance.

“Oh, yes, I suppose the Jedi would have taken the time to make you soft these last few months.” Sidious continued to meander his way down the hall, towards a turbolift. “If you want to see her, I suggest you get in, my boy. My generosity has its limits.”

“Fight me first, if you think the Jedi have made me soft. I won’t lose again.” His heart was pounding. Of course he wanted to see her. He wanted nothing more. But the Force was like a ringing alarm in his ears.

“In time, in time,” Sidious tilted his head. “Or we could simply skip this messy business. I’m willing to forgive you and restore you to your position as my Apprentice. My heir. You could have  _ everything. _ ”

“I had everything and I didn’t get it from you,” he said. “You took her from me. How do you even believe I would consider that offer is beyond me. Are you afraid you will lose?”

“I’m offering you more than the Jedi will. They have just as much reason to lie to you as I did. Given the chance, they would be more than willing to snatch your children from their mother’s arms in the name of peace and justice.”

“I don’t let Sith or Jedi command me anymore,” Anakin snapped. “I am tired of you trying to stall me with your pointless offers and your pointless questions. Fight me. Once and for all.”

“Get in the lift, Vader.”

“I am not falling for your tricks,” Anakin said coldly.

“It is not a trick. I am taking you to her so that when I kill you, you can die near her. So that you will be close enough that she will be able to sense your presence even with the ysalamiri surrounding her.”

_ Ysalamiri. Of course.  _ With all of his nerves on high alert, he entered the lift. No matter what, no matter when, the Emperor would die, Anakin knew that much. No matter how much he stalled, the outcome would be the same.

“Would you like to know about your children?” Sidious asked, as the lift started, his tone making it seem like they were simply old friends having a friendly chat. “I visit them every day, to see their progress. To think of what they will become.” Anakin just glared at him, not giving him an answer as he would not give him the pleasure of making it seem like this was anything but what it was, his final moments. “I debate about it. Whether I should keep both of them or dispose of one. They’re both strong, though I think the boy might have the higher midi-chlorian count. But the girl might be more inclined to docility. A preferable trait for a princess.” He could kill him in the lift. He couldn’t run away. “Don’t. It would be so easy for me to give the termination order on Amidala from here,” Sidious warned. “Your thoughts betray you, my old Apprentice.”

“Your weakness is your overconfidence, my old Master,” Anakin stated.

“I think not.” The lift came to a stop and Sidious strode out, entering a code into the doors in front of him. “After you.”

“Elderly first,” Anakin stated dryly. “I’m not turning my back to you. I’m not that foolish.”

“If you insist.” Sidious stepped inside calmly, indicating a long white stasis pod attached to several monitors and an enclosure that was filled with the reptilian Force-blocking creatures. “You see? Nothing to fear. Come see her. She has such a lovely maternal glow.”

Anakin tried not to focus too much on the stasis pod, he couldn’t, that was what Sidious wanted. To distract him, make him emotional, vulnerable to an attack. “I will enjoy her maternal glow once you’re dead and I’ve taken her out of here. You’re avoiding the inevitable.” 

“If you insist.” Sidious sighed dramatically, igniting his own lightsaber. “You’ve certainly mastered the stubborn righteousness of the Jedi. It’s very tiresome.”

“Any final words?” Anakin asked as he got into a fighting stance. “Or should I just end your worthless life right now?”

“And their dramatics,” the old man scoffed, slashing at Anakin’s unscarred eye.

Anakin blocked the attack and so the hardest duel of his life, so far, had started. While Sidious was old, there was no denying the power that he drew from the Dark Side of the Force that he nurtured for many, many years. While Anakin was younger and ruthless in his attacks, he found himself toe to toe with the old Sith.

The blades clashed back and forth. He had to fight harder, faster. Think faster. Think better. Unpredictable. He needed to do all of that because of Padmé. He was so close to her now. So, so close that even with the ysalamiri, he could almost feel her and  _ gods,  _ did he miss her. Sidious managed to take advantage of his momentary distraction, pushing him against the stasis pod. “ _ This _ is why I used the suit for all those years,” he sneered. “Because once I take away your strength in the Force, you are  _ nothing _ . You will die here. And I will win.”

“Without  _ your  _ strength in the Dark Side, you are just old and tired,” Anakin said, kneeing the Sith in the stomach and pushing him back. “The ysalamiri affect me as much as they affect you. Neither of us can use the Force and that  _ is  _ a fair fight.”

“And yet, I still outmatch you.”

“Do you?” He provoked, twirling the lightsaber before jumping to avoid Sidious’ red blade and when he landed on his feet, his saber came down to cut Sidious’ right arm. The Emperor hissed, reaching with his left hand to regain the dropped hilt. Anakin kicked the lightsaber away, the hilt scratching the floor before he kicked the Emperor in the chest, throwing him back. “No Force. No Dark Side. No you.”

“There you are.” Sidious croaked, looking up at him with an oddly peaceful expression. “ _ Vader. _ My greatest creation.”

“Balance of the Force. Isn’t that the prophecy? Light and Dark. I can be both Anakin and Vader. Both of them want you dead,” he said before he finally took the head of the beast. The two pieces of Sidious’ body fell to the ground with an unceremonious thud, but Anakin was already focused on more important things.

Turning off his lightsaber, he hurried to the stasis pod and took a minute to breathe, staring at Padmé’s peaceful expression. It was over. It was finally over. Looking around the monitors, he turned to the main one and shut the stasis off and opened the pod. He caressed her cheek lovingly while his other hand stroked her hair. “Wake up, love, wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up.”

She took a slow shuddering breath as her eyelids fluttered open. “Anakin?” she whispered hoarsely.

He let out a relieved laugh. “Yes, love, it’s me,” he responded with a whisper. “I’ve missed you.”

“See?” she smiled at him weakly. “I knew you’d find me.”

“Always,” he leaned down to kiss her softly, joining their foreheads. “I love you. So much. You’re safe now.”

“And we’re together,” she pointed out, wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Let’s take you out of here,” he said with a smile, placing his arms underneath her and lifting her up, bridal style. 

“How long has it been?” she asked, looking down at her stomach hazily. “Ugh, I’m enormous.”

“Four months,” he replied as he didn’t stop until they were at the lift.

“Is that really all?” she frowned. “I would have thought it was more, based on my size.”

“Remember, you are carrying twins,” he said softly as the doors closed and the lift began to descend. 

“Oh, I remember, I’ve had four months to think of what to name them,” she joked.

“At least you were entertained,” he said with a small smile.

“It was agonizingly boring. I desperately wanted to see you again.”

“I’m here,” he kissed her cheek as the lift came to a stop and as the doors opened, they were met by Obi-Wan and Ahsoka.

“Padmé!” Ahsoka exclaimed, relieved.

“The Emperor…?” Obi-Wan trailed off.

“Lost his head,” Anakin quipped, moving out of the lift. “He’s no longer a concern.”

“Obi-Wan, Ahsoka,” Padmé managed to speak up. “It’s good to see you. It’s good to see  _ any _ friendly face.”

“Is the ship ready to depart?” Anakin asked.

“Yes,” Ahsoka replied.

“The Inquisitors?” He questioned.

Obi-Wan and Ahsoka exchanged a glance. “Dealt with,” the older Jedi replied.

“Good. Organa or Mothma, whoever they want, needs to make the communication now. The Emperor is dead and if they don’t want absolute chaos, they need to take the reins. Can you take care of that, Obi-Wan?”

“There have been raids all over the city since we were deployed,” Ahsoka interjected. “The entire Rebel fleet, strategic points all over the city. One call, and they’ll start broadcasting to the whole galaxy about the Emperor’s death—”

“I need to be there,” Padmé spoke up.

“Why?” Anakin asked, almost offended at the prospect.

“Before I went into stasis,” Padmé explained, “one of the exams he had done on me involved taking a sample of the babies’ DNA. For the records of his heirs. If I’m there, maybe Imperial loyalists can be persuaded to surrender.”

Anakin stopped midway to the ship. “You can’t be serious.”

“I don’t want these babies born into a galaxy still at war with itself,” she insisted stubbornly. “I’m so tired of fighting, Anakin, aren’t you?”

“That was the point of taking you off this planet,” he huffed in frustration, carefully setting her down on her feet. “Let them figure out what to do. Why do you have to get involved?”

“I—”

“You’re in no condition to do anything right now,” Obi-Wan pointed out. “I agree with Anakin, we should take you back to base and let you recover before we talk about politics.”

“Better go along with it, Padmé, Anakin and Obi-Wan almost  _ never _ agree on anything,” Ahsoka interjected.

“Well?” Anakin asked impatiently. “Can we  _ please  _ head back to base?”

“Alright,” Padmé sighed reluctantly. “Alright, we can go. But we will have to talk about it at some point, Ani.” He rolled his eyes but nodded his agreement. She pressed a hand to his cheek and leaned against him as best she could with an enormously pregnant belly. “I love you.”


	7. I Don't Wanna Fight No More

“Well, you were right,” Bail Organa strode into the Alliance command center. Padmé barely looked up from the embroidery she was doing on a baby blanket as she sat in a hoverchair next to Anakin. The four months in stasis coupled with the mass of the babies had left her basically incapable of walking, and it had gotten rather annoying. “They read Palpatine’s will today, and it left everything to, and I quote, ‘those possessing the following genetic sequences.’”

Anakin made a face as he could imagine the genetic sequence it stated. He set the datapad aside with a scowl, unhappy that even beyond the grave, Sidious was messing up his life. “What now?” He asked dryly.

“The Imperial Court can hardly expect two unborn babies to rule the galaxy,” Padmé pointed out, putting down her needlework to take Anakin’s hand reassuringly. “But I understand your concern, Bail, we need to end this interregnum period before too many factions crop up and this civil war becomes even worse.”

“We can decline his will, can’t we?” Anakin asked tiredly. “We don’t have to accept it. The responsibility of the Galaxy should be with the Senate and whoever they choose to represent them.”

“The Empire was an illegitimate regime, but it has been the norm for eight years. And reconstruction of a Republic that wouldn’t fall prey to the same weaknesses would take time,” Bail sighed, taking a seat.

“I don’t care, you’ve had  _ eight years _ to plan the fall of the Empire, what were you expecting to do when it happened?” Anakin questioned harshly. “Do something,” he urged. “Because, obviously, newborns are not suited for the role and honestly, not having a plan, Organa, it’s embarrassing for your cause.”

“We were trying to construct a plan, but we were struggling to survive before you joined us,” argued Bail. “You changed nearly everything, Anakin.”

“Oh, don’t give me the Chosen One poodoo, I’m tired of it,” he groaned.

“Is there anything in the will about a regency?” Padmé asked abruptly.

“Yes,” Bail said, glancing uneasily between the couple. “The guardians of the children.” He looked at Anakin, who Bail thought was about to start hitting his head against the wall.

“And can you have the constitution ready in two and a half months? Potentially sooner?” she prompted.

“We could do our very best and work towards that goal.”

“Padmé…” Anakin started warily.

“There can’t be any  _ could _ about it,” she said firmly. “It would need to be ready by then.”

“It will be ready,” Bail guaranteed. “What are you suggesting?”

“I am suggesting that I am the twins’ guardian by virtue of the fact that I’m still carrying them,” she answered bluntly, “and that as soon as you have that constitution prepared, I could pass it into law and therefore abdicate and end the Empire without any further bloodshed.”

“That is a brilliant idea,” Bail said. “We’ll start working on the constitution today and we’ll have it prepared as soon as possible. We all want the same thing. We want this war to finally come to an end.”

“There isn’t really any other option,” Padmé sighed, leaning her head against Anakin. “Give us some time alone, Bail, we need to talk. Get a head start on that constitution.” 

Nodding, the Senator stood up and left the couple alone. “What are you doing?” Anakin asked with an exasperated sigh.

“The only thing I could think of,” she admitted, still holding onto his hand. “I’m not happy about it either, Ani, but what other choice do we have?”

“Let them figure out what to do,” he answered bluntly. “We’ve done our part. I mean, we’ve done the  _ hardest  _ part. He’s dead, isn’t he? They want us to do everything too? What good are they for, anyway? They don’t contribute anything useful for a cause they argued about every day like children!” He scowled. “Force, they are incompetent,” Anakin muttered, grabbing the datapad again.

“It’s two months,” she insisted. “Ninety days at most. Then we can leave it behind forever. We’ll go to Naboo, you can meet my family, we’ll be free.”

“It is your decision,” he replied. “If that’s what you want to do… it’s your choice. Of course, you can barely walk, and could give birth earlier than expected and basically the whole Galaxy still thinks you are dead, but yes, you can rule the Empire for a couple of months,” Anakin shrugged as his fingers moved around in the datapad, reading the new schematics for an update to the X-Wing.

“I don’t want it,” she huffed. “But I don’t want the twins to be born into a galaxy still at war. I don’t want to risk someone coming after them to try and control the galaxy—”

“Yes, I know, you said that before, and I’m telling you now, it’s your decision. If you want to do it, you’ll do it. In two months, we’ll speak about what’s next,” he replied.

“It doesn’t feel like it’s a decision you approve of.”

“Does it make a difference?” He raised one eyebrow.

“Of course it does! You're...” She stopped, realizing that she didn’t know exactly how to define their relationship. They were in love, she knew that, but beyond that, she had no idea.

“If I tell you I don’t agree with you, then what?” Anakin prompted. “No. I know. We’ll go to your home, you’ll sulk the entire time while listening to the HoloNews muttering under your breath that you could have done something.”

“If you’re not going to take this seriously, what’s the point?” she huffed, turning away from him.

“Just because a madman decided to leave the Empire to  _ heirs  _ that are not even his bloodline, it doesn’t mean we have to do what he wished for,” Anakin scowled. “Haven’t we already done enough?”

“This isn’t about the galaxy, Ani, this is about the children!  _ Our _ children.”

“How is taking control of the Empire  _ about  _ them?”

“It’s the best chance of making sure they don’t have to grow up in a galaxy—”

“ _ At war _ , yes, I’ve heard that,” he interrupted, frustrated, before sighing and getting quiet for a minute. “Alright. We’ll do it your way. You’re a politician after all.”

“Say it again, maybe you can sound  _ more  _ like you hate me,” she said bitterly.

He narrowed his eyes. “Where did you hear that, even? You are a politician. Right? It’s not a lie and if you have to do this, at least you know how to play the field. How can you have heard  _ that  _ from a simple remark?”

“It’s in your tone.”

“I’m frustrated. It should have ended with his death. All of this. But no, even dead, he manages to create havoc in all of our lives,” Anakin shook his head.

“I don’t know what else to do.”

“What you have to. Be Regent. Shouldn’t be too difficult,” he sighed with a small shrug. “You were Queen once.”

“I guess we finally get to answer your question.” He just looked at her curiously. “Back on Mustafar. When you asked me what choices I would make if I were put in this kind of position again.”

“I guess we will,” he agreed, nodding.

“I’m sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize.”

“Still, this isn’t what I wanted for us,” she rubbed her stomach miserably.

“It’s just two months, it will be over faster than we think,” he tried to reassure her.

“You’re right,” she sighed. “I guess all of this is happening so fast, I’m still processing it. And falling back into old habits.”

“I know,” Anakin said. “It’s alright.”

“It’s really not.” Padmé started twisting her fingers together nervously. “Because when this  _ is _ over in two months, then we’ll be parents. And I’m terrified that I won’t be any good at it.”

Anakin bit the inside of his cheek. “We can think about that two months from now.”

“Or the two of you should talk about it now,” Shmi’s voice came from the other side of the room.

Turning to look at his mother, Anakin slowly shook his head ‘no’. It wasn’t a conversation he was looking forward to having. At all. “We have bigger things to worry about,” he blurted out. “Haven’t you heard? Padmé is the Regent Empress.”

“I had not heard,” Shmi said. “But I don’t think that means your impending parenthood isn’t worth discussing.”

“We can do it at a later time. You need to see Bail, don’t you?” Anakin asked, turning to Padmé. “To tell him you are moving forward with your decision?”

“I told him to give us an hour, we have time,” Padmé deflected stubbornly as she looked at Shmi. “It’s nice to properly meet you, Mrs. Skywalker.”

"I am happy to meet you as well," Shmi said with a warm smile as she approached the couple and gave Anakin a cup of caff and Padmé a cup of tea. "It's made with some calming herbs. I can't imagine all this stress is good for the babies, dear," she said as she subtly took Anakin’s datapad. "How are they?" She asked, laying a hand on the younger woman's shoulder. "If they are anything like Anakin, incredibly active."

“It comes and goes,” Padmé admitted as she took a sip of her tea. “I have a lot of bruises on my stomach, I guess they were kicking while I was in stasis, trying to get my attention while the ysalamiri were blocking the use of the Force.”

“It only means they are strong and that is what matters. I got a few bruises of my own when I was carrying this one,” she ran her hand affectionately through Anakin’s curls. “I will leave you two to talk. Padmé, I look forward to spending more time with you.”

As Shmi left them, Anakin threw her one last helpless look before the couple fell into silence and he stared at the brown liquid in his mug. He couldn’t have the heart to heart with her as he did with his mom before, it was just cruel for her. She was so excited about the babies. It was all she talked about.

“Whatever it is you’re thinking about, whatever’s bothering you, I’d like to know,” Padmé said bluntly.

"I'm just bothered by the fact that we're still here. This was supposed to be over with his death." Anakin sulked as he sipped his caff. “Haven’t we been through enough? Haven’t  _ you _ ?” He sighed.

“Of course I have. I don’t  _ want _ to be Empress Regent. But it’s not about me. I  _ can’t _ put off thinking about the children, Anakin, the reality is that they’re coming, whether or not…” she trailed off, looking at him with a perfectly expressionless face. “That’s what’s really bothering you, isn’t it? The fact that we can’t go back because of children we weren’t planning to have. Children we didn’t want.”

He winced at the way she said it. "We didn't plan for them, but I know you want them,"  _ because you are a better person than me, selfless, made to love.  _ "I'm struggling," Anakin confessed, even as fear began to turn his stomach into knots. "I wanted us to be able to be free and be just the two of us once we got rid of Sidious so we could discover each other and our relationship. To define us and have time to be happy without looking over our shoulders." He sighed and pushed the mug away. "I barely know how to be a functional human. I am not saying I never wanted children, I just never thought of them. The two months I thought we would have… they won't be ours to enjoy or learn. Then they'll come and it's… surreal to me."

“It’s not how I wanted this to be either,” she pointed out gently. “And I don’t blame you for not being ready. Force,  _ I’m _ not ready, it seems to me as if it was barely a month ago that I even found out I was pregnant. I hate that this wasn’t a decision the two of us could make together. But it wasn’t and now what choice do we have?”

"I just wanted to have more time," he said miserably. "You're already an amazing person they can look up to. I can barely socialize. I never even seen a baby," he sighed. "I don't know, I guess we need to take it one day at a time. I just wished we had more time to be us, before this," he mentioned her stomach. "But you know me. I'm selfish. I'll get there." 

“I know you will. If there’s anything I’ve learned from loving you, it’s that when you want something, you get it.” She started maneuvering the controls on her chair. “I’m going to visit Obi-Wan and Siri in the medbay, would you like to join me?”

He shook his head. "I promised Ahsoka I would train with her this afternoon."

“Alright. But find me if you change your mind.” She leaned over to kiss his cheek. “I love you, Ani.”

"I love you too," he said softly. 

As she left, he sighed, feeling horrible. Padmé might understand him, but he still felt weird that in two months he was going to be a father of two, and he hadn't connected in any way with the children she carried. He could blame this on Sidious, again. He could blame everything on the Sith Lord. If he had been with Padmé from the moment she found out about the babies, maybe now he would be more at ease. It was awful of him that he hadn't even felt them kick or asked about them the same way Shmi did. 

He had two months to wrap his head around the idea. Two months. 

"Skyguy, you okay?" 

"What?" 

"You okay?" Ahsoka repeated. 

"No. I need to blow off some steam. Let's train." 

* * *

Siri glared at the spot of the wall in front of her. She understood  _ why _ she was being kept under medical observation, but that didn’t make it any less unbearable. They could have at least given her something to keep her entertained.

"How's the treatment going?" Anakin asked, leaning against the doorway of the room. 

“Wonderful, I should be completely healed in about a thousand years,” she grumbled.

“From what I heard, they are confident it will be a couple of hundred years earlier than that,” he chuckled. “I mean, you are the great Siri Tachi. I’ve only ever heard amazing stories. You have a very devoted boyfriend,” Anakin said teasingly, dragging a chair near her bed.

“I don’t know if I agree with you there.” She poked at one of the tubes stuck in her arm, keeping her on a stream of nutrients and fluids. “He wasn’t nearly as dedicated to finding me as you were to finding Senator Amidala.”

“He thought you died. By my hand. I’ve come to realize that when you are a Jedi in the Rebel Alliance, you don’t chase the dead, your only focus is protecting the living. I believe if he had known you were alive, he would have turned the Galaxy inside out,” he replied. “You’re talking about Obi-Wan, Siri, does it really surprise you he focused on the mission? It doesn’t mean he wasn’t devoted.”

“For now, maybe,” she frowned. “But we are talking about Obi-Wan. I know him well enough to know his first devotion is to the Order. He turned his back on his own child for it.”

“Korkie Kryze,” Anakin said slowly.  _ He really is Obi-Wan’s son, then. _ “I’m not going to say I know him better than you, but I have come to realize he protects the people he loves. Maybe he didn’t turn his back on Korkie. Maybe he was protecting him from all of this,” he waved around. “Also, people change with war. You’ve been gone and the Order doesn’t exist anymore.”

“We’ve both changed, and I don’t have all that much faith that he’ll want to remain devoted when it becomes clear that I am no longer the woman he loved and lost. He’s no Padmé Amidala.”

“Give him a chance. It’s what Padmé is doing for me. If I deserve a chance, he definitely does. Give him a chance to prove he’s changed. You can’t expect to happen overnight, but you can’t give up without even knowing,” he pointed out. “If Padmé had given up, I wouldn’t be here. She’s still allowing me to grow and adapt. I mean… she hasn’t left me even after I confessed how I felt about the children.”

“Oh, my apologies, I didn’t know there were multiple Skywalker infants on the way. Congratulations,” she said earnestly, then realized what he’d said in full. “You’re unhappy that you’re going to be a father?”

“I’m not  _ unhappy.  _ But I’m not  _ happy _ either,” he replied with a grimace.

“Well, you can hardly be worse at it than Sidious was,” she deadpanned.

“Is that your way of… helping… me? Because it’s terrible,” he scowled.

“Of course it is, I’ve been an Inquisitor for years. We’re not the sentimental type.”

“Neither is Darth Vader,” he shot back. “Who I still am. More than Anakin. I have no idea how to act or how to feel about this. I never thought about it. When Padmé entered my life, I thought about her and being with her,  _ alone.  _ The idea of a family did not cross my mind and now it is something real and I’m not coping well. Which, I know, is disappointing for her.”

“I’d be disappointed if I were in her position too. She didn’t ask for these children any more than you did, and I knew her once, back in those last days of the Republic. She worked relentlessly, thought about everyone but herself. We all thought it was a shame she wasn’t born strong enough in the Force to be a Jedi, she would have been a perfect one.”

“I’m glad she wasn’t,” he quickly replied before sighing. “Padmé is maternal. She has that quality. She is going to be a perfect mother. I know she didn’t ask for this, but she’s handling it so much better than I am and I don’t know what to do. I don’t know how I can be better or feel better.”

“I disagree. Obi-Wan was in here earlier with his datapad, we watched that nonsense of her assuming the regency, and all I could think was that she was taking on everyone else’s problems to avoid her own.” 

“I told her not to do it. Not to accept that regency. She didn’t listen to me,” Anakin pointed out. “I wanted us to take these two months to try and get some… some… some normalcy and get to a point where we felt comfortable with each other and had come to terms with what happened.”

“You have my deepest sympathies for that. I don’t know what else to tell you, Vader. Anakin. Whoever you are. Both of you seem to have the same issue.”

“Which is?” He rolled his eyes.

“There are two selves at war within each of you. Padmé didn’t make that decision, Amidala did.”

“You’re just causing me to have more questions,” he said dryly.

“You’ve spent what, thirteen years being Vader? And you’re only just learning to be Anakin again,” Siri explained. “And she spent just as long suppressing Padmé in favor of Amidala. Though I have to be honest, some of what I’m saying might be the drugs they’ve been keeping me on.”

“I’ll let you rest, Siri,” he stood from the chair. “Thanks, anyway, for the talk.”

“Good luck.”

“Thank you. I’ll need it.”


	8. Because You Are the Reason

“I DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT!” Padmé’s shout could be heard across the Senate building.

“My lady, I am sorry, but—” See-Threepio had to shuffle to the side to avoid being hit with his mistress’ datapad. “My goodness!”

Anakin appeared in the doorway of her office, alerted by her shouts, looking from the distressed protocol droid to Padmé. “Don’t you think you should slow down?” He asked. “It can’t be good for the children.”

“It would be easier to slow down if it didn’t feel like I had to do everything,” she snapped, burying her face in her hands. “I was extremely clear in the fact that I would not be participating in the construction of the new Constitution, but it seems that everyone is determined to ignore me!”

“You are the Empress Regent. They are looking at you for guidance,” he said, chewing the inside of his cheek. “Maybe you should do it and make sure it’s Palpatine-proof.”

“Maybe  _ you  _ should do it,” she snarled irritably. “You know how he would think better than I would.”

Her anger didn’t phase him. “You accepted this role. You have to do it. Otherwise, this regency will last longer than two months,” he paused. “Unless that’s what you want?”

“I would be happy to never see this Force-damned planet again,” she seethed. “I can’t believe you’d even  _ think _ otherwise. So if all you have to offer is a smug ‘I told you so,’ you can get out and take Threepio with you, I’ll be going back home to the apartment.” She’d given the Imperial Palace back to the Jedi and returned to her old suite in the Senate Apartment Complex, but it had done little in the ways of improving her mood. She was sick of Coruscant. Imperial City. Whatever it was called now, she could barely remember between the stress and her hormones.

“It’s not an ‘I told you so.’ I’m just pointing out that the sooner you help those idiots with the Constitution, the sooner you can leave this planet,” he huffed. “We can  _ all  _ leave.”

“I hate this.” She finally looked up at him. “Maybe you could just kidnap me?”

“Don’t tempt me,” he said dryly.

“Oh, I  _ will _ tempt you, just like I tempted you away from Sidious.”

He gave her a small smile. “Let’s leave, then. If that’s what you want. If you hate this. Tell them to figure this out themselves and let’s leave this planet for good.”

“Master Ani, that would be a terrible breach of protocol,” Threepio fussed and Padmé threw another datapad at him.

“Shut up, Threepio,” Anakin snapped. “I’m just here because of you,” he told Padmé. “I’ll leave whenever you want.”

“Well, I’d been thinking—” the comlink on her desk chimed with an incoming transmission, and she groaned. “One moment.” Anakin sighed and sat in one of the chairs, huffing and glaring around the room. “What is it?”

“Qui-Gon Jinn, my Lady Regent, I’m looking for Anakin,” the elder Jedi’s voice came through the other end. Padmé shot a look at Anakin, mouthing  _ what does he want?  _ Anakin looked like he had eaten something sour. “Is he not with you?”

“What is this about, Qui-Gon?”

“I’ve been trying to speak with Anakin about the New Order of the Jedi. However, he has been avoiding me and I wanted to know if he is with you,” Qui-Gon explained and Anakin rolled his eyes, making a displeased face.

“I’ll pass along the message if I see him, but I think he was taking the day to go street racing. Goodbye.” Padmé shut off the commlink and looked at Anakin dryly. “And to think I used to consider him a friend.”

“He’s insane. As if I would even consider being a part of any Order,” Anakin scowled. “I want to be far, far away from here. Linking myself with the Jedi is not how I’m going to accomplish that,” he said before pausing. “You want me to take you home? My mom is making dinner and you need to rest. Because of the children.” He said quietly, nodding at her stomach.

“ _ Please _ .”

“Come on,” he said with a smile. “This will still be here tomorrow.”

“Alright, help me up.”

He extended his hand to help her up and as she was near, he kissed her forehead, then her cheeks, and finally, her lips. She leaned into the last kiss, her stomach pressing against him, and it was possible for both of them to feel the aggressive round of kicking suddenly being performed.

“They always do that,” he said, half-annoyed, as he broke the kiss, looking down at her stomach.

“I suppose they get their dislike of sharing from you,” she pointed out.

“What am I supposed to do? Stop kissing you?” He raised one eyebrow as he felt another round of kicks and made a face. He took a step back and offered Padmé a hand. “Fine,” he sighed. “Let’s go home.”

“It’s only for a few more weeks,” she reminded him, leaning against his shoulder as they walked. “Then we’re leaving, regardless of whether they have the Constitution in order. I gave Bail my terms, and I’m just,” she paused to stifle a yawn, “I’m so tired.”

“A few more weeks and they can actually kick me outside the womb,” he mumbled. “You should cut back on work. Sleep more in the morning. Maybe they’ll also be in a better mood if you rest more and I won’t have to be kicked to Mustafar and back every time I want to hug you or kiss you.”

“Ask me again after I’ve been buttered up with your mother’s cooking,” she teased, rubbing the spot where the children had kicked. “I can’t help but wonder which one of them it was.”

“Does it matter?” He asked. “I think it was both at the same time.”

“I think I would know if four feet had kicked my insides at once.”

“Oh,” he said. “Right. Which one do you think it was?”

“Instinct makes me say it was the boy.”

“I see,” Anakin nodded.

“I take it by your tone that you don’t agree.”

“A kick that strong? It had to be the girl,” he replied, squeezing her hand.

“Hmm, maybe,” she agreed slowly. “We’ll find out soon enough in any case.”

They were silent for a few more minutes before Anakin decided to speak. “You said you had thought of names. Any of them stick?” Sure, she had said that two months ago, but better late than never.

“A few. I didn’t want to bring it up because you didn’t seem to want to talk about it,” she admitted.

“I do now,” he said quietly. “We’re weeks away from their arrival. They should have names.”

“Well, I had been thinking that maybe we name them after someone we both care about, but I couldn’t think of anyone who really fit that. And then I wondered if you had any ideas.”

“Me? Ideas?” He looked at her bewildered. “I thought you had already chosen the names.”

“I’d chosen ideas, but I didn’t want it to just be my decision. And I wasn’t sure what we were going to do if you didn’t like Luke and Leia as our choices.”

“Luke and Leia?” Anakin questioned, pausing his steps and tilting his head to the side curiously.

“If you don’t like them, tell me now so we can buy every baby-naming holobook out there and at least try to be ready.”

“I love them,” he whispered. “I could say it’s because I don’t have other ideas, but I truly love the names together. Luke and Leia Skywalker. It’s perfect.”

“Are you sure? You’re not just saying that because it saves us having to go through a million more names?”

“I promise. I do love them,” he nodded with a smile. “I wouldn’t lie. I’ve been honest so far, haven’t I? For better or for worse,” he kissed her temple. “Luke and Leia. They are our babies. Our children.” 

And something, deep inside of him, stirred and it made his smile widen. She smiled back at him, looking truly happy for the first time since she had assumed the regency. “Well, that’s one less problem to deal with.”

“Now let’s get you home and tell my mom that her grandchildren have names at last,” he beamed, kissing her knuckles and tugging her towards the speeder.

“Actually, do you mind if we call her now? I’m suddenly craving Iego angel food cake.”

“Aren’t you always?”

“No, last week it was copious amounts of shuura fruit.”

He laughed and nodded. “I stand corrected. You can call her from the speeder. I’m sure she’ll be all too happy to feed her grandbabies whatever they desire.”

“I think she’s the person most excited about them,” Padmé laughed weakly. “My family still seems to be processing everything. I try to talk with them when I can, but it keeps lapsing into awkward silences.”

“My mom has this ability of seeing the best of everything. For her, the twins mean a new chapter is starting and we can forget the sins of the past. That is something I greatly want to believe in,” Anakin pointed out. “Your family will come around. Especially when we are in Varykino and they can visit often.”

“You’ll love it. Even more beautiful than Takodana,” she promised as they reached the garage and she climbed awkwardly into the speeder. “And I’m sure my nieces will be obsessed with the twins.”

“Trust me. It can’t come soon enough.”

* * *

“Ani?” Padmé prodded his shoulders. “Anakin, you need to wake up.”

Anakin groaned and turned to lay on his back before he glanced at the chrono on the bedside table. “Force, Padmé, is the middle of the night, what happened?” He asked groggily, shifting to a sitting position.

“My water broke,” she answered, calmly pulling back the bedcovers so he could see the stained sheets. “And I would like to leave for the medcenter now, so we can get my painkillers administered before labor starts in earnest.”

He looked at the stained sheets for a moment, before looking back at her calm face and back at the sheets. He looked petrified. "What do you mean, your water  _ broke _ ? We still have a week," he sounded panicked and his eyes widened. "Are you sure you didn't just… you know… didn't reach the fresher fast enough?"  _ I am not ready for this. I needed that extra week.  _

“It doesn’t smell like that,” she pointed out, “and the emdee said we should be prepared for them to come early.”

“He also said you were going to start with contractions. Did you?” He frowned and he still didn’t move.

“I haven’t felt any yet, but is there really any harm in going to the medcenter?” she huffed.

“N-No,” he slowly pushed the covers away. “What…” he cringed, “...do you need me to do? I have no idea what I  _ can  _ do.”

“Get the bag we packed, get the speeder, wake up your mother,” she listed hazily. “Please.”

Anakin nodded along with her list and the first thing he did was wake up his mother. As soon as Shmi realized the time and saw the panicked look on her son’s face, she immediately understood what was happening and she ordered him to get the speeder and she would take care of the rest. 

Shmi entered the room and rushed to Padmé’s side. “How do you feel, dear?”

“Sticky and wet,” Padmé answered, bracing herself against the wall as she moved towards her closet. “And some cramping that I suppose could be a contraction, but it’s not incapacitating yet. Anakin is in worse shape than I am.”

“I noticed,” Shmi said amused. “Men usually are. Do you think you are able to take a quick shower before we leave? So you feel more comfortable.”

“I don’t know if I can do anything quickly anymore, I’m enormous and I’m tired,” she pointed out. “They can clean me up when we get there, can’t they?”

“Depends on how dilated you are and after the drugs, sweetheart, you won’t even feel your legs. I can help you shower while the contractions are still a few minutes apart and you’ll feel better. It takes five minutes. How does that sound?” Shmi offered.

“It sounds manageable enough.” Padmé nodded. “But we should probably make sure someone’s helping Anakin calm down too.”

Shmi chuckled and helped Padmé into the fresher. “I’ll call Obi-Wan to meet us at the medcenter. Anakin will be fine. Don’t worry about him. You’re the one who’s about to give birth to two babies.”

“And I’ll be on painkillers through most of it, I think it’ll be fine.”

“You’ll be great,” Shmi reassured her. “In a few hours, you’ll have those beautiful babies in your arms.”

“Luke and Leia,” Padmé sighed. “They better not cause any more trouble for the rest of their lives, after how they came into this world.”

“Honey, as long as they are not podracing at nine, you’ll be very lucky,” Shmi stated dryly as she started the water. “Anakin was giving me grey hairs from the moment he learned how to walk,” she smiled fondly. “I’m very happy for the both of you,” she added softly. “I know he is resistant and it has been difficult, but I know that from the moment he lays eyes on them, all his worries and concerns will disappear.”

“ _ Podracing, _ ” Padmé repeated in disbelief. “Force help us.”

"Oh, yes, he and his friends raced all the time. Anakin was the fastest. The Force was helping him at the time. I wore my heart on my sleeve, with that boy."

“Please stop talking,  _ that _ image is going to make me worry,” Padmé groaned.

Shmi chuckled. "Let's get you cleaned up, dear."

* * *

Anakin paced the length of the hallway and Obi-Wan followed him with amused eyes. For a terrifying Sith and a man who once claimed to be selfish, Anakin looked like a common man. 

"She's alright. Perfectly fine for a woman in labor. You shouldn't be so worried and you're going to make a hole in the floor if you keep pacing."

"I'm not ready." 

"No one ever is."

"Says the man that didn't even try to be," Anakin scoffed before pausing. "I'm sorry. I'm… stressed."

“I didn’t have anything to offer Korkie. Nor Satine,” Obi-Wan admitted quietly. “If she’d asked me to stay, everything might have been different. But we both made our choices, and we can’t go back.”

"Is it easy? To know you have a son but he doesn't know about you? Might never know?" Anakin finally sat down next to the Jedi. "Have you kept in touch with the Duchess at all?" 

“Only in the last few months, since we freed Padmé,” Obi-Wan answered. “Korkie still doesn’t know. And if he never knows, I think that might be for the best. He was lucky not to be born Force-sensitive, I knew that when he was born, but it just furthers the divide between the two of us. He belongs in his mother’s world.”

"A mother that he doesn't know he has either. While I understand, or try to, I know what it's like living a lie and one day, if he does know, you have to be ready for his questions."

“If it comes to that, it’s my burden to bear.”

“Anakin?” Shmi’s head emerged from the delivery room. “Padmé’s nearly ready, she wants you in here.”

"Mom, I'll just get in the way," Anakin sighed. 

“She wants you,” his mother repeated. “And I suggest you humor her.”

Anakin ran a hand through his hair and nodded, standing up and shakily followed his mother inside the room. Padmé was reclining on the bed, a modesty barrier over her stomach. “I don’t know why they’re bothering, you’ve seen me naked,” she joked before cringing a little as a contraction hit her.

"Maybe because I'll pass out if I see anything. I've handled a lot of blood, but this is a whole new level," Anakin said, coming to take her hand. "How are you feeling?" 

“I can basically only feel the contractions on the bottom half of my body,” she answered, squeezing his fingers lightly. “But I think I might have soiled myself in the process.”

"How do you know if you don't feel half of your body?" He teased, kissing her forehead. 

“I—  _ ow! _ ” she hissed as a contraction hit.

“Be ready to push, my lady,” the Emdee said. “One, two, three.” Padmé scowled, but complied, her grip tightening on Anakin’s hand in the process.

Anakin squeezed her hand in return, to give her some sense of comfort, reassurance. "You're doing great."

“And again, my lady, one, two, three,” the droid coached, and Padmé’s grunt turned into a growl as her entire body contorted with the effort of pushing. Shmi moved in closer, her hands outstretched.

“I can see the head now, dear. You’re nearly there.”

“Halfway,” Padmé corrected irritably.

"You can do this. If anyone can, it's you," Anakin said, placing his other hand on her hair and pushing it out of her face. "I love you. You are so strong and I'm so lucky and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you." 

“Are you doing what I think you’re doing?  _ Now? _ ” she asked in disbelief.

"Only if you say yes," he laughed through his nerves. "I would have done it before but I spent the last two months freaking out about being a father and I should have asked the moment I rescued you."

Padmé looked away from him, her entire face folding in on itself as she managed the last push and a baby’s cry began to fill the air. “ _ Yes, _ ” she exhaled.

"Luke's here," Shmi said emotionally as the baby kept crying. 

"I love you. So much," Anakin whispered, kissing Padmé on her forehead. 

“I love you too,” she sighed. “Can you pass me that cup with the ice chips? I’m really thirsty now.”

Anakin nodded and passed her the cup before a throat cleared behind him, the cries of their son had quieted and when he turned, he saw Shmi with Luke already wrapped in a soft, blue blanket. "Would you like to meet your son?" 

"I… yes," he nodded slowly, arms shaking. Shmi carefully set the baby in his arms, and the little one’s eyes seemed to widen at the sight of Anakin. He gasped softly as he cuddled the baby closer to his chest. The same blue eyes staring back at him. It was in that moment that Shmi saw her son fall in love with his son and she knew, she knew his fears had ceased to exist. 

“Can I see him?” Padmé asked with a smile, passing her cup back to another one of the droids.

Anakin sat down next to her on the bed and leaned forward for her to see him. "He's perfect."

“Oh, look at the little curls,” she sighed, reaching out to brush the top of Luke’s head. “It’s like when I took your helmet off the first time. Remember?”

"He's much cuter," he chuckled as the baby cooed and waved his arms. "And innocent," he took one little palm and kissed it. Luke squeaked and squirmed at the contact, but there was only pure love radiating from him, Anakin could feel it through the Force. 

“Don’t be mean to your sister just because you’re older,” Padmé warned softly. “My sweet boy.”

"No, he already loves us. All of us. I can feel it," Anakin beamed.

“We’ll see how long that lasts, when they’re old enough to talk and bicker,” Padmé laughed, then winced. “That’ll be Leia wanting her turn.”

"Give Luke to the emdee to be examined, Ani," Shmi said. "You'll all be together in a few minutes."

Reluctantly, he passed Luke to the emdee and the baby squirmed and whimpered at the loss of warmth as the emdee took him to an adjacent room. Anakin bit his bottom lip, worried as he searched the Force for his son. 

“Ani, go be with him, I can manage,” Padmé said. “I know what to expect now.”

"Can you imagine explaining to Leia why I was at your side for her brother but not for her? I don't want to have that conversation."

“I’d hope we’re  _ not _ going to tell them about this,” Padmé groaned as she gave a bigger push. “Oh, Force, make up your mind, Leia. Are you coming out or not?”

"She's stubborn," Shmi shook her head. "Like her father. Anakin had me in labor for six hours straight. Just a few more pushes, Padmé."

“Don’t make me count,” the younger woman warned. “Ani, are you sure you can’t just pull her out with the Force?”

"I'm sure," he nodded. "Almost there."

Padmé’s jaw clenched and she leaned forward, seething as she forced her muscles to propel the second little body out. Leia’s entrance was far more bombastic than her brother’s, shrieking the instant she was caught by the medical droid. “Quite a pair of lungs she has,” Shmi remarked, moving in with the pink blanket as the droid severed Leia’s life-cord. “There now, sweetheart, it’s alright, Grandma’s got you.”

Leia kept wailing, arms waving wildly around, legs kicking. She was showing her displeasure and making herself known.

"She's very unhappy about coming in second," Anakin chuckled.

“I’m sorry, did  _ you _ want to try and swaddle her?” Shmi retorted with a smile.

"I'll have time to do it. Can I hold her?" He beamed. 

“Of course you can.” His mother moved over with the wriggling baby girl in her arms. “Leia, say hello to your daddy.”

Leia's loud cries turned to soft whimpers as she was placed in her father's arms. She puckered her lips and kicked her feet, looking up at him with chocolate brown eyes. "Hi, beautiful."

“Oh, I see, you’re already their favorite,” Padmé teased as the droids moved in to help her pass the afterbirths. “At least until they decide they’re hungry.”

Anakin laughed, somewhat relieved of everything he was feeling. Love and peace. It was all he had wanted. After months without knowing how to feel about the pregnancy, he was completely sure he loved both of his children and that he would do anything for them and their mother. 

"Go be with them in the other room. Leia needs to be examined and Padmé needs to be taken care of," Shmi said. "You'll soon be all together. They will be hungry," she chuckled. 

"You'll be okay?" Anakin asked Padmé as Leia grabbed one of his fingers, her strong grasp making him believe she was behind all of those kicks. 

“Yes, fine,” she promised. “The worst is over. We did it. We really did it, Ani.”

"I love you."

“I love you too.” She reached out to touch Leia’s head, then his cheek. “So much. And now we get the rest of our lives to just be together.”

* * *

“Mistress Padmé, all the HoloNet reporters have arrived, they’re waiting for you,” Threepio fussed, and Padmé groaned, detaching Luke from her breast.

“Anakin, are we all packed?” she called. “And does Leia need to be fed?”

“Leia’s asleep and everything is packed,” Anakin announced as he appeared with a sleeping Leia in his arms. “I think she’ll be good for a while.”

“Good enough for you to hold her in front of the press while I officially abdicate on the twins’ behalf?”

“Yes, we will all be very good while you do that,” he said enthusiastically.

“Then will you please come here and kiss me?”

Anakin beamed and leaned down, kissing her soundly. “I can’t wait to start the rest of our life together… far, far away from here.”

“Agreed.” Padmé looked down at Luke. “Shmi, could you please come burp him? I need to change my clothes, and Anakin has Leia.”

“Of course, give me my grandson,” Shmi eagerly took Luke into her arms and placed him on her shoulder. “I can’t get over how much he is like you, Ani.”

“Our family has pretty amazing genes,” Anakin chuckled.

“Ani, what do you think?” Padmé pulled out a pale mauve sheath dress decorated with silver beading along the sides and the front, and a dark grey velvet one. “Which one is better suited?”

“The first,” he nodded towards the grey dress as he rocked Leia gently, brushing his lips across her forehead.

“That was my thought too.” Padmé stripped off her robe and pulled the dress over her head. “And it has built-in support, which is rather convenient. I still don’t feel like putting on a corset. Threepio, help me, will you?” The protocol droid waddled over to help tug the dress down properly. “Thank you.”

In his grandmother’s arms, Luke burped and yawned. “You should just get it over with. Soon, they’ll both be cranky and it will be a nightmare of a trip to Naboo,” Anakin said as Luke’s blue eyes looked curiously around the room.

“Float my shoes over to me and we can be ready that much sooner,” she retorted.

“You only want me for my powers,” he joked as her shoes floated towards her. “And my looks, because I obviously give you very good-looking children.”

“No, the sex is part of it too.” She plucked the shoes out of the air and slid them on her feet one at a time. Shmi rolled her eyes as she bounced Luke who squealed in delight. “Does my hair look alright?”

“You still remember about the sex, so that’s a good sign,” he said teasingly, given that ever since her kidnapping in Mustafar, they weren’t able to be intimate. Yet. “Your hair looks perfect. Just get this over with, Padmé, please.”

“Come on, then,” she reached out to take Luke back from Shmi. “We’ll take the lift down, you don’t mind getting the last of our things onto the ship so that we can leave as soon as the abdication has been completed, do you?”

“Not at all. Whatever I can do to speed the process.”

“Thank you.” Padmé sighed in gratitude as she headed towards the lift, bouncing Luke in her arms to lull him to sleep. “We’re almost there, baby boy,” she cooed. “Almost done with this.”

“Then it’s a peaceful life, I hope. No more drama or wars,” Anakin sighed and Shmi smiled at him.

“Have you two figured out what you will be doing, after this?” Shmi asked. “Besides being parents to the two delights.”

“We’re thinking about a couple of things, aren’t we?” Anakin said, nudging Padmé.

“Ani, don’t act like it’s a secret, she was there when you asked me to marry you,” Padmé rolled her eyes while clearly suppressing a laugh.

“Besides the wedding, silly,” Anakin replied.

“Yes, I meant more in a professional sort of way,” Shmi chuckled.

“We haven’t decided on anything official,” Padmé pointed out. “Honestly, I think we can afford to take a year just to be with the twins and find our footing as a family before we figure out what’s going to be the rest of our lives.”

“True,” Anakin nodded in agreement as the lift came to a stop and the doors opened. Padmé covered Luke’s ears as she stepped into the fold of reporters, glaring at them openly. They were making the baby fuss. 

“I will not stand on ceremony,” she announced, moving towards the desk where her datapad waited. “I was very clear when I assumed the Regency that this would be temporary. I am keeping that promise now with these final acts. First, I approve the new Constitution submitted to me by the Senate, and name as acting Tribunes Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, and Giddean Danu, to hold the position for a period of five months, until a proper election can be held.” Using her finger, she signed the first document, then moved to the next page. “And secondly, finally, on behalf of my children, I relinquish in perpetuity all claim to the Galactic Empire, which is herein dissolved.” She repeated the process of signing, then looked up at the assembled press. “We have a Republic once more, let us keep it that way. Thank you, and goodbye.”

* * *

“You look deep in thought,” Anakin whispered as he appeared behind her and wrapped his arms around her, kissing her neck. “A credit for your thoughts?”

“Just enjoying the moment’s peace, actually,” she admitted, leaning into his embrace. “When was the last time we had them asleep simultaneously?”

“Probably when they were still in the womb,” he chuckled. “Enjoying your quiet, retired life?” Anakin asked, teasing her slightly. “Or are you bored of us already?”

“We have infant twins, I haven’t had time to be bored,” she countered as she turned to kiss him on the neck. “And even if I did have the time, I don’t have a reason to be bored. I’m  _ happy _ , Ani, the happiest I may have ever been.”

“Good. Me too,” he turned her around to properly kiss her. “And I know I was difficult over the last few months of your pregnancy, but I hope you know how much I love the twins and how much I love you and am grateful for what you’ve given me.”

“Of course I know.” She placed a hand on her cheek. “I’ve never doubted you.”

He smiled, kissing down her neck and collarbone. “Excited to become Mrs. Skywalker?”

“Maybe. Are you excited to become Mr. Naberrie?” she teased.

“Maybe,” he smirked. For a moment, they stayed in each other’s arms, staring out at the beauty of the Lake Country surrounding them.

“Did you ever imagine this is where you’d be?” she asked softly. “Before you met me?”

“No,” he replied. “I never pictured a future for me. I never dreamt of one. I don’t know what would have happened to me without you and I don’t want to think about that. You being exiled to Mustafar was the best thing that could have happened to me.”

“I didn’t imagine  _ this _ when I used to picture my future,” she admitted. “But this is so much better than anything I did think of. So, really, it was the best thing that could have happened to me too. I love you, Anakin Skywalker, more than I knew it was possible to love someone.”

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her passionately, forever wondering how he ever got so lucky.


End file.
